HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

Cromwell Green Entrance

Nigel Evans: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what assessment the Commission has made of the effects of the new visitors reception and security entrance at Cromwell Green on the number of hon. Member-sponsored tours of the House.

Nick Harvey: The Cromwell Green Entrance opened as the main public entrance to Parliament on 21 April 2008.
	In the six months April to September 2008, there were 65,978 visitors on Member-sponsored tours of the Palace of Westminster. In the equivalent six months in 2007, there were 67,358; and in the same period in 2006 there were 63,919.
	The number of hon. Member-sponsored tours is adjusted up or down from time to time by the visitor services team in the light of experience. The most recent adjustment was a reduction in May for new bookings, when the morning maximum was reduced to ensure visitors could be securely accommodated without major overcrowding or delays.
	The Commission has not conducted any assessment of the effects of the new visitor reception arrangements on the number of tours sponsored by hon. Members. The parliamentary visitor board (comprising senior officials in both Houses) is conducting a review of visitor handling, to include the operation of the new entrance. This will be taken to the relevant committees in each House in the new year.

Meat

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what the countries of origin have been of  (a) beef,  (b) chicken,  (c) bacon,  (d) sausages,  (e) pork and  (f) lamb procured by the Department of facilities and its predecessor in the last three years.

Nick Harvey: The House of Commons catering service does not maintain a record of the country of origin of foods purchased and so it is not possible to confirm the provenance of meat and poultry supplies in each of the last three years.
	Since October 2007, butchery suppliers have periodically been required to confirm the country of origin of meats and poultry they have supplied to the House of Commons. Based on the information provided, it is estimated that in 2007  (a) all beef supplied was UK reared except a small quantity of Halal beef sourced from the Republic of Ireland;  (b) 97 per cent. of poultry was UK reared, with the balance being specific products sourced from France;  (c) , (d) and  (e) all bacon, sausages and pork was from UK reared pigs; and  (f) all lamb was UK reared.
	The House authorities believe that the provenance of meat and poultry supplies was similar in previous years.

Parliamentary Tours

Nigel Evans: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how much income has been generated from visitors to the House during the summer openings in each of the last three years; and what the cost to the House was of operating summer opening in each year.

Nick Harvey: The summer opening programme continues to run as a cost-neutral (self-financing) operation, the strategy being to break even over a three-year period. The current three-year period, for this purpose, is 2007-09. Figures relating to the last three years are as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			  Summer of:  Income  Cost 
			 2006 412,419 597,950 
			 2007 744,448 677,870 
			 2008(1) 731,082 758,909 
			 (1) 2008 figures still subject to final adjustments. 
		
	
	These figures relate to both Houses' shares. The Commons' share of costs and income is 70 per cent.

Parliamentary Tours

Nigel Evans: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what the average hourly pay rates are for  (a) Blue Badge Guides employed during the summer openings and  (b) guides employed directly by the House; and what the reasons are for any differences.

Nick Harvey: During the summer opening programme, professionally qualified Blue Badge Guides are employed to conduct tours of the Palace of Westminster. Half-day and full-day rates are calculated on the basis of nationally agreed Blue Badge rates. A qualified London Blue Badge Guide delivering a standard parliamentary tour in English would earn £38.30 per hour; in foreign languages £43.30. The cost of the Blue Badge Guides is covered by the ticket price.
	For Member-sponsored tours when Parliament is sitting, the current policy is that guides are drawn primarily from serving or retired House staff and that Parliament should bear the expense of the tours. The current rate for in-house guides is £22.70 per hour.
	The difference in pay reflects the higher level and formal nature of the training and qualification of Blue Badge Guides. The higher level of training includes the mechanics of guiding and detailed knowledge of London as a whole (which fits in with the requirements of summer opening visitors), as well as an independent parliamentary qualification.

JUSTICE

Cemeteries

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what research his Department has undertaken into  (a) the management of burial grounds and  (b) memorial safety in the last three years.

Bridget Prentice: In January 2004, a report on research into cemeteries and their management was published by the Home Office. Following the transfer of responsibility for burial law we published the results of a survey of English and Welsh burial grounds in June 2007. This can be found on the Department's website at:
	www.justice.gov.uk/whatwedo/burialgrounds050607.htm
	We have not conducted research into memorial safety, but have discussed with stakeholders how best to assess and deal with the risks associated with unstable gravestones. We are now arranging for the publication of appropriate guidance.

Children: Protection

Edward Timpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many people convicted of causing or allowing the death of a child or vulnerable adult since 2005 received  (a) a custodial sentence of less than 12 months,  (b) a custodial sentence of more than 12 months but less than four years,  (c) a custodial sentence of four years of more,  (d) an indeterminate sentence for public protection,  (e) a suspended sentence,  (f) a community sentence and  (g) a conditional discharge;
	(2)  how many  (a) prosecutions and  (b) convictions there have been for the offence of causing or allowing the death of a child or vulnerable adult under section 5 of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004.

Maria Eagle: The requested information is contained in the following tables.
	2006 is the latest year for which annually published statistics are available.
	Data for 2007 will be published on 27 November.
	
		
			  Number of persons proceeded against and number sentenced( 1)  for the offence of causing or allowing the death of a child or vulnerable person by result and sentence length, all courts, England and Wales, 2005 and 2006 
			  Result 
			   Offence description  Number of prosecutions  Number of convictions  Conditional discharge  Community sentence  Fully suspended sentence  Immediate custody  Indeterminate sentence( 2) 
			 2005 Causing or allowing the death of a child or vulnerable person(3) 2 — — — — — — 
			 2006  3 2 — — — 2 — 
		
	
	
		
			Sentence length 
			   Offence description  Less than 12 months  12 months and over and less than four years  Over four years 
			 2005 Causing or allowing the death of a child or vulnerable person(3) — — — 
			 2006  — — 2 
			 (1) These data are on the principal offence basis. (2) Sentences of imprisonment for public protection introduced by the Criminal Justice Act 2003 on 4 April 2005. (3) Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004 (S.5)  Note: These figures have been drawn from administrative data systems. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.  Source: OMS Analytical Services.

Commonhold

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst of 5 November 2008,  Official Report, column 626W, on the Land Registry, what assessment he has made of the reasons for the level of take-up of commonhold in residential dwellings since 2002.

Bridget Prentice: The commonhold legislation came into force on 27 September 2004, creating a voluntary alternative to long leasehold ownership for flats and other similar premises. In view of the low take-up, my noble friend, Lord Hunt of Kings Heath, announced that the Government intended to consult with key parties to see what could be done to improve it on 26 July 2007,  Official Report, column 908. As I said in my reply on 28 October 2008,  Official Report, column 851W, to the hon. Member for Peterborough (Mr. Jackson), we are reviewing our plans for the publication of a consultation document in the light of other priorities and I will make a statement when a decision has been made.

Conveyancing: Internet

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what role the Valuation Office Agency is playing in the Land Registry's development of e-conveyancing.

Michael Wills: The Valuation Office Agency are not involved in the development of e-conveyancing but the two organisations keep in regular contact.

Conveyancing: Internet

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the latest timetable for the implementation of electronic conveyancing is; and how much his Department has allocated to support the scheme over each of the next three years.

Michael Wills: The latest revision of Land Registry's business case for the Electronic Conveyancing Programme estimates that the programme of work will be fully implemented in 2014-15. The Ministry of Justice gives no financial support to the programme which will be financed in full by Land Registry who estimate total costs will be in the range of £270 to £310 million.

Court of Protection

Joan Humble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many cases held in the Court of Protection have been reported since it became a Court of Record in October 2008; and how the public are able to obtain information on the decisions of the court.

Bridget Prentice: Under the Court of Protection Rules 2007, the general position is that hearings before the court will be held in private, but the court may decide that all or part of the hearing should be held in public. The court may also authorise the publication of a text or summary of a judgment or order made by the court. The court can authorise the publication of information on its own initiative or on an application made by one of the parties to proceedings. Since 1 October 2007, the court has not held any hearings in public and nor has it authorised the publication of any information about proceedings held in private. For any future cases, where the judge authorises publication of information, details of the order or judgement will be published on the Office of Public Guardian website.

Court Orders

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many charging orders have been issued in each court area in each of the last five years.

Bridget Prentice: The following table shows the numbers of charging orders made in each county court and HM courts service area in each of the last five years.
	
		
			  Number of charging orders by HMCS region and county court in England and Wales 2003-07 
			  Region  Court name  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007 
			  London Barnet 149 178 272 290 409 
			  Bow 173 161 336 500 603 
			  Brentford 84 120 166 230 404 
			  Bromley 251 544 481 819 1,257 
			  Central London 256 294 377 372 441 
			  Clerkenwell and Shoreditch 188 175 230 270 404 
			  Croydon 235 220 464 538 1,106 
			  Edmonton 232 351 583 721 903 
			  Ilford 74 130 233 253 318 
			  Kingston-upon-Thames 85 121 109 202 284 
			  Lambeth 190 335 512 412 479 
			  Mayors and City 44 48 82 127 114 
			  Romford 90 170 322 406 630 
			  Uxbridge 436 241 294 391 810 
			  Wandsworth 115 141 214 227 311 
			  West London 123 88 168 200 111 
			  Willesden 132 179 275 413 520 
			  Woolwich 57 85 148 226 266 
			   London Group 2,914 3,581 5,266 6,597 9,370 
			
			  London total 2,914 3,581 5,266 6,597 9,370 
			
			  Midlands Buxton 18 20 19 32 45 
			  Chesterfield 90 82 112 148 185 
			  Derby 175 252 288 389 586 
			   Derbyshire 283 354 419 569 816 
			
			  Leicester 192 286 427 570 865 
			  Melton Mowbray 63 50 57 89 142 
			   Leicestershire 255 336 484 659 1,007 
			
			  Boston 48 54 111 115 191 
			  Grantham 21 22 50 47 89 
			  Lincoln 78 94 133 170 276 
			  Skegness 14 29 41 43 62 
			   Lincolnshire 161 199 335 375 618 
			
			  Kettering 81 74 122 158 219 
			  Northampton 387 207 315 435 477 
			  Wellingborough 30 56 66 109 185 
			   Northamptonshire 498 337 503 702 881 
			
			  Mansfield 81 120 188 214 357 
			  Newark 43 54 65 73 95 
			  Nottingham 270 364 584 760 1,048 
			  Worksop 38 38 61 59 134 
			   Nottinghamshire 432 576 898 1,106 1,634 
			
			  Burton-on-Trent 72 61 96 112 190 
			  Stafford 48 52 86 126 224 
			  Stoke-on-Trent 202 280 337 448 554 
			  Tamworth 46 51 81 124 155 
			   Staffordshire 368 444 600 810 1,123 
			
			  Nuneaton 66 130 153 200 257 
			  Rugby 65 200 279 503 596 
			  Stratford 18 23 48 75 63 
			  Warwick 42 61 100 85 142 
			   Warwickshire 191 414 580 863 1,058 
			
			  Evesham 13 23 24 38 57 
			  Hereford 23 33 39 52 84 
			  Kidderminster 41 37 54 63 114 
			  Ludlow 12 10 9 7 14 
			  Oswestry 6 18 20 23 44 
			  Redditch 104 129 176 283 1,153 
			  Shrewsbury 40 50 77 70 110 
			  Telford 320 363 509 617 1,071 
			  Worcester 69 63 154 125 221 
			   West Mercia 628 726 1,062 1,278 2,868 
			
			  Birmingham CJC 728 955 1,251 1,463 2,212 
			  Coventry 172 233 282 378 733 
			  Dudley 108 121 209 247 342 
			  Stourbridge 52 47 91 100 172 
			  Walsall 143 237 340 503 610 
			  Wolverhampton 82 178 215 294 441 
			   West Midlands 1,285 1,771 2,388 2,985 4,510 
			
			  Midland total 4,101 5,157 7,269 9,347 14,515 
			
			  North East Hartlepool 48 61 86 144 177 
			  Teesside 141 233 432 432 947 
			   Cleveland 189 294 518 576 1,124 
			
			  Bishop Auckland 35 28 52 85 171 
			  Consett 22 24 35 73 168 
			  Darlington 82 67 120 224 281 
			  Durham 55 81 150 401 482 
			   Durham 194 200 357 783 1,102 
			
			  Grimsby 92 189 197 240 404 
			  Kingston-upon-Hull 188 302 498 621 1,227 
			  Scunthorpe 59 64 77 119 162 
			   Humberside 339 555 772 980 1,793 
			
			  Harrogate 47 69 181 156 139 
			  Scarborough 44 48 75 93 170 
			  Skipton 18 176 103 95 165 
			  York 72 102 155 180 249 
			   North Yorkshire 181 395 514 524 723 
			
			  Gateshead 32 57 237 1,286 1,740 
			  Morpeth 45 56 119 123 295 
			  Newcastle-upon-Tyne 333 1,125 1,420 1,818 2,394 
			  North Shields 325 1,393 1,494 1,452 1,577 
			  South Shields 44 41 86 116 259 
			  Sunderland 96 104 136 193 403 
			   Northumbria 875 2,776 3,492 4,988 6,668 
			
			  Barnsley 72 77 138 177 216 
			  Doncaster 139 247 281 319 413 
			  Rotherham 87 114 218 241 335 
			  Sheffield 199 275 406 651 720 
			   South Yorkshire 497 713 1,043 1,388 1,684 
			
			  Bradford 498 905 1,855 3,613 6,619 
			  Dewsbury 40 278 634 257 235 
			  Halifax 71 138 152 162 201 
			  Huddersfield 161 129 214 272 407 
			  Keighley 37 69 438 1,935 2,764 
			  Leeds 425 647 1,001 1,206 1,568 
			  Pontefract 54 77 187 166 207 
			  Wakefield 73 101 152 181 264 
			   West Yorkshire 1,359 2,344 4,633 7,792 12,265 
			
			  North East total 3,634 7,277 11,329 17,031 25,359 
			
			  North West Chester 321 787 813 332 742 
			  Crewe 42 39 102 110 142 
			  Macclesfield 54 46 75 104 157 
			  Northwich 17 40 63 99 162 
			  Runcorn 32 32 90 88 112 
			  Warrington 51 82 118 168 324 
			   Cheshire 517 1,026 1,261 901 1,639 
			
			  Barrow-in-Furness 31 31 46 53 89 
			  Carlisle 32 46 53 92 111 
			  Kendal 11 6 14 18 27 
			  Penrith 16 6 15 14 19 
			  Whitehaven 17 34 30 49 86 
			   Cumbria 107 123 158 226 332 
			
			  Altrincham 172 162 126 80 174 
			  Bolton 98 135 160 192 375 
			  Bury 86 83 127 191 274 
			  Leigh 28 31 42 73 113 
			  Manchester 404 408 570 694 1,429 
			  Oldham 151 151 205 324 516 
			  Salford 84 95 170 201 438 
			  Stockport 103 112 167 209 365 
			  Tameside 84 84 161 188 269 
			  Wigan 104 127 268 441 554 
			   Greater Manchester 1,314 1,388 1,996 2,593 4,507 
			
			  Accrington 23 35 51 70 108 
			  Blackburn 58 90 133 158 216 
			  Blackpool 117 120 234 376 445 
			  Burnley 41 59 62 104 139 
			  Chorley 18 30 33 59 82 
			  Lancaster 36 53 57 94 104 
			  Nelson 26 28 57 45 60 
			  Preston 108 112 182 235 286 
			  Rawtenstall 24 24 24 37 98 
			   Lancashire 451 551 833 1,178 1,538 
			
			  Birkenhead 104 126 154 249 334 
			  Liverpool 289 381 560 639 1,043 
			  Southport 46 46 72 99 145 
			  St. Helens 66 82 194 230 397 
			   Merseyside 505 635 980 1,217 1,919 
			
			  North West total 2,894 3,723 5,228 6,115 9,935 
			
			  South East Bedford 45 69 105 186 240 
			  Luton 88 102 238 324 400 
			   Bedfordshire 133 171 343 510 640 
			
			  Cambridge 62 90 154 177 190 
			  Huntingdon 32 37 47 69 115 
			  Peterborough 124 123 200 273 293 
			   Cambridgeshire 218 250 401 519 598 
			
			  Basildon 101 139 219 342 526 
			  Chelmsford 71 95 165 222 285 
			  Colchester 122 126 221 315 425 
			  Harlow 70 67 114 133 225 
			  Southend-on-Sea 177 259 424 686 980 
			   Essex 541 686 1,143 1,698 2,441 
			
			  Hertford 44 89 63 103 198 
			  Hitchin 77 90 106 137 222 
			  St. Albans 41 45 75 128 564 
			  Watford 171 234 375 440 652 
			   Hertfordshire 333 458 619 808 1,636 
			
			  Ashford 43 64 124 152 233 
			  Canterbury 80 103 157 196 272 
			  Dartford 89 112 243 316 635 
			  Gravesend 16 40 51 69 0 
			  Maidstone 63 62 112 168 205 
			  Medway 102 117 208 314 418 
			  Thanet 20 59 55 103 157 
			  Tunbridge Wells 44 61 120 172 191 
			   Kent 457 618 1,070 1,490 2,111 
			
			  King's Lynn 51 49 105 111 208 
			  Norwich 136 143 262 259 399 
			   Norfolk 187 192 367 370 607 
			
			  Bury St. Edmunds 46 53 68 121 217 
			  Ipswich 105 104 170 182 269 
			  Lowestoft 41 59 98 147 157 
			   Suffolk 192 216 336 450 643 
			
			  Epsom 82 119 527 515 340 
			  Guildford 61 73 88 189 775 
			  Reigate 154 178 220 355 369 
			  Staines 75 81 121 195 262 
			   Surrey 372 451 956 1,254 1,746 
			
			  Brighton 583 434 654 1,378 2,517 
			  Chichester 86 73 134 200 282 
			  Eastbourne 30 52 89 120 191 
			  Hastings 46 63 108 118 199 
			  Haywards Heath 26 31 36 79 106 
			  Horsham 122 201 166 173 322 
			  Lewes 22 20 48 53 85 
			  Worthing 77 73 131 439 363 
			   Sussex 992 947 1,366 2,560 4,065 
			
			  Aylesbury 48 61 74 161 183 
			  Banbury 75 136 232 532 698 
			  High Wycombe 44 52 59 116 136 
			  Milton Keynes 101 177 245 435 655 
			  Newbury 36 43 70 54 91 
			  Oxford 115 181 368 507 766 
			  Reading 171 272 310 321 497 
			  Slough 86 124 213 268 492 
			   Thames Valley 676 1,046 1,571 2,394 3,518 
			
			  South East total 4,101 5,035 8,172 12,053 18,005 
			
			  South West Bath 34 31 53 62 77 
			  Bristol 365 494 635 992 1,478 
			  Taunton 48 55 89 125 148 
			  Weston-super-Mare 55 51 70 121 123 
			  Yeovil 153 91 114 193 188 
			   Avon and Somerset 655 722 961 1,493 2,014 
			
			  Barnstaple 76 70 52 81 100 
			  Bodmin 42 52 54 77 110 
			  Exeter 369 331 809 1,305 834 
			  Penzance 27 25 52 79 85 
			  Plymouth 175 155 171 266 352 
			  Torquay 121 82 104 125 200 
			  Truro 54 117 155 132 143 
			   Devon and Cornwall 864 832 1,397 2,065 1,824 
			
			  Bournemouth 139 382 298 311 465 
			  Poole 124 177 233 318 345 
			  Weymouth 40 35 48 58 57 
			   Dorset 303 594 579 687 867 
			
			  Cheltenham 70 126 110 152 148 
			  Gloucester 106 139 183 253 339 
			   Gloucestershire 176 265 293 405 487 
			
			  Aldershot 82 108 141 187 276 
			  Basingstoke 51 67 106 119 201 
			  Newport (IoW) 27 21 57 88 95 
			  Portsmouth 126 150 234 361 517 
			  Southampton 235 221 512 757 822 
			  Winchester 28 32 23 34 34 
			   Hampshire and Isle of Wight 549 599 1,073 1,546 1,945 
			
			  Salisbury 18 19 37 46 71 
			  Swindon 67 80 165 341 567 
			  Trowbridge 49 62 129 154 211 
			   Wiltshire 134 161 331 541 849 
			
			  South West total 2,681 3,173 4,634 6,737 7,986 
			
			  Wales Aberystwyth 6 13 14 17 36 
			  Brecknock 6 5 8 14 32 
			  Carmarthen 32 21 46 65 104 
			  Haverfordwest 24 11 30 57 70 
			  Llanelli 42 29 38 51 126 
			  Welshpool 7 16 19 24 29 
			   Dyfed-Powys 117 95 155 228 397 
			
			  Blackwood 2,015 229 215 211 276 
			  Newport (Gwent) 61 117 210 364 672 
			  Pontypool 6 46 69 81 88 
			   Gwent 2,082 392 494 656 1,036 
			
			  Caernarfon 20 34 23 51 57 
			  Conwy and Colwyn 15 11 33 56 67 
			  Llangefni 14 16 21 21 60 
			  Mold 15 13 41 36 86 
			  Rhyl 35 46 75 95 176 
			  Wrexham 26 58 71 110 312 
			   North Wales 125 178 264 369 758 
			
			  Aberdare 8 24 22 45 105 
			  Bridgend 45 73 101 166 213 
			  Cardiff 2,312 4,274 5,810 7,176 8,428 
			  Merthyr Tydfil 14 26 36 59 93 
			  Neath 40 58 97 110 182 
			  Pontypridd 62 68 130 145 270 
			  Swansea 87 101 211 256 374 
			   South Wales 2,568 4,624 6,407 7,957 9,665 
			
			  Wales Total 4,892 5,289 7,320 9,210 11,856 
			
			  England and Wales total 25,217 33,235 49,218 67,090 97,026 
			 Source: HMCS CaseMan system

Marriage

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 4 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 315-17W, on marriage, 
	(1)  how many orders under section 55 of the Family Law Act 1986 in relation to the validity of marriages were  (a) granted and  (b) denied in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many orders for judicial separation under section 55 of the Family Law Act 1986 were  (a) granted and  (b) denied in each of the last five years.

Jack Straw: The courts do not record how many applications under section 55 of the Family Law Act 1986 are received, nor do they record the outcome of these cases. Anecdotal evidence from courts suggests that there are very few.
	There are no provisions for judicial separation under the Family Law Act 1986. The provisions for judicial separation can be found within the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973. There were 3,388 applications made for judicial separation during the five-year period 2003-07. Records show that for the same five-year period 1,953 decrees of judicial separation were pronounced (the following table sets out the number of cases per year). The courts do not keep records of the number of applications which were denied. For comparison 778,575 applications for divorce were received for the same period.
	Not all applications for judicial separation result in a final order as many parties choose not to pursue the case. This is not always because the parties have reconciled. The law prohibits divorce during the first year of marriage and some applications for judicial separation issued during the first year of marriage are withdrawn on the first anniversary of the marriage, before a decree is granted, and a petition for divorce then is issued.
	
		
			  Family courts—summary statistics on matrimonial proceedings, 2003 - 07 
			  Number of cases 
			  Judicial separation  Petition filed  Decrees granted 
			 2003 826 467 
			 2004 745 419 
			 2005 700 385 
			 2006 615 353 
			 2007 502 329 
			  Source:  HMCS FamilyMan system. Published in Judicial and Court Statistics 2007, September 2008.

Pleural Plaques

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects to publish the Government's response to the consultation paper on pleural plaques; and if he will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: The Government's consultation on pleural plaques closed on 1 October, and the responses are currently being analysed. We will seek to publish a response paper outlining the way forward as soon as possible.

Prison Service: Disciplinary Proceedings

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prison officers were  (a) suspended and  (b) dismissed in each year since 1997.

David Hanson: Information about the numbers of public sector Prison Service employees of any grade suspended from duty in each year since 1997 is not held centrally, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost by contacting 138 establishments across England and Wales.
	Information about prison officer suspensions in the contracted prison estate 2003(1) to 31 October 2008 are set out in the following table.
	(1 )The Office for National Commissioning (formerly Office for Contracted Prisons) was not in operation before 2003. Prison officer includes: prison custody officer and senior officer for the contracted estate.
	
		
			   Suspensions 
			 2003 15 
			 2004 30 
			 2005 34 
			 2006 48 
			 2007 51 
			 2008 75 
		
	
	Prison officer dismissals in the public sector Prison Service and the contracted prison estate 1998(1 )to 31 October 2008 set out in the following table.
	(1) No dismissals data are available for 1997 as the public sector Prison Service personnel recording system was not established until 1998.
	
		
			   Dismissals 
			 1998 21 
			 1999 29 
			 2000 72 
			 2001 109 
			 2002 141 
			 2003 229 
			 2004 200 
			 2005 237 
			 2006 225 
			 2007 266 
			 2008 176 
		
	
	The information includes dismissals for: inefficiency, conduct and performance reasons. Prison officer includes: prison officer, senior officer, and principal officer for the public sector prisons; and prison custody officer and senior officer for the contracted estate.
	The number of dismissals increased significantly in 2003 due to a greater number of medical inefficiency dismissals as a result of more robust management of sickness absence in the public sector Prison Service from that time. In addition to this, the Office for National Commissioning (formerly Office for Contracted Prisons) began operating in 2003 and therefore data for contracted prisons are included from this date.

Prisoners: Drugs

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many  (a) male and  (b) female prisoners were treated for drug addiction in each year since 1997.

David Hanson: Information about drug treatment programmes in prison was not collated centrally until 2001-02. The following table shows details from that year onwards.
	
		
			   2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			  Drug treatment programmes
			 Starts male 4,362 3,978 4,188 7,130 10,166 10,383 10,514 
			 Starts female(1) 329 408 515 479 577 767 805 
			 Total 4,691 4,386 4,703 7,609 10,743 11,150 11,319 
			 
			  CARATs
			 SMTAs(2) male 36,031 49,576 48,876 53,262 59,118 58,386 58,828 
			 SMTAs female(1) 3,307 4,320 5,249 5,763 6,893 7,287 6,995 
			 Total 39,338 51,896 54,125 59,025 66,011 65,673 65,823 
			 
			  Clinical treatment(3)
			 Male(4) n/a n/a n/a 45,311 n/a n/a n/a 
			 Female n/a n/a n/a 8,592 n/a n/a n/a 
			 Total 41,765 50,701 57,891 53,903 53,773 51,520 58,809 
			 (1) The system for recording these figures is unable to distinguish gender other than by the type of establishment where the information is recorded. Some establishments may have been subject to re-role mid-year and some interventions may have been delivered on mixed sites. Therefore the gender split is a good approximation but will be subject to some inaccuracies. (2) Substance Misuse Triage Assessments. (3) Detoxification or maintenance prescriptions. (4) 2004-05 is the only year that complete central data were collected on the number of female prisoners undergoing clinical treatment. This was carried out by survey.

Prisoners: Drugs

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many  (a) male and  (b) female prisoners tested positive for drugs in each year since 1997.

David Hanson: Prisoners are subject to mandatory, voluntary and clinical drug tests. The number of positive tests for drugs under the mandatory drug testing programme is given in the following table. Voluntary and clinical drug test results are not held centrally and could be obtained by surveying 138 establishments, which would only be at disproportionate cost.
	All data in this answer have been drawn from an administrative data system. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system. The data are not subject to audit.
	
		
			   (a) Number of male prisoners testing positive  (b) Number of female prisoners testing positive 
			 1997-98 19,637 596 
			 1998-99 18,420 600 
			 1999-2000 17,098 780 
			 2000-01 15,990 812 
			 2001-02 13,689 681 
			 2002-03 12,304 578 
			 2003-04 13,959 685 
			 2004-05 14,274 813 
			 2005-06 13,819 891 
			 2006-07 12,342 930 
			 2007-08 13,291 687

Prisons: Childbirth

Sandra Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many women have given birth while serving a prison sentence in England in each of the last five years.

David Hanson: The numbers of prisoners who have given birth while serving their custodial sentence since April 2005, when the Prison Service began collecting figures centrally, are as follows:
	
		
			   Number 
			 April 2008-October 2008 56 
			 April 2007-March 2008 102 
			 April 2006-March 2007 99 
			 April 2005-March 2006 106 
		
	
	The Government are seeking to encourage greater use of community sentences for women offenders where possible. Where a custodial sentence has been given, specific provision is made for those women who are pregnant or have babies with them in prison.

Prisons: Death

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many  (a) suicides,  (b) deaths from natural causes and  (c) suspicious deaths there were in prisons in each year since 1997.

Shahid Malik: The National Offender Management Service's system for classifying deaths in prison custody consists of four categories indicating the apparent cause of death. These are 'self-inflicted', 'natural causes', 'homicide' and 'other non-natural'. There is no specific category of 'suspicious deaths'. The deaths in prison custody since 1997 to 13 November 2007 have been classified as follows:
	
		
			   Homicide  Natural causes  Other non-natural  Self-inflicted  Total 
			 1997 2 48 1 68 119 
			 1998 4 46 1 83 134 
			 1999 0 58 0 91 149 
			 2000 3 62 1 81 147 
			 2001 0 68 1 73 142 
			 2002 0 66 3 95 164 
			 2003 1 86 2 94 183 
			 2004 2 102 9 95 208 
			 2005 3 88 5 78 174 
			 2006 0 83 3 67 153 
			 2007 2 90 0 92 184 
			 2008 (year to date) 3 80 2 51 136 
		
	
	There is also one further death in 2008 which remains unclassified. As inquests can take several years to be completed, all classifications are considered as provisional. Historical numbers can change slightly when new information is received.

Small Claims: Internet

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many small claims for matters relating to the trade of counterfeit goods over the internet were reported in 2007.

Bridget Prentice: There were approximately 1.2 million small claims issued in the county courts of England and Wales in 2007. However, figures relating solely to small claims about the trade of counterfeit goods over the internet are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

TREASURY

Bank Services

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps are being taken to prevent future instances of home state deposit guarantee schemes being unable to cover the savings of UK depositors.

Ian Pearson: The European Deposit Guarantee Schemes Directive (94/19/EC) sets the minimum level of compensation to retail depositors in credit institutions in the event of the failure of a deposit taker. The directive is in the course of being updated to increase the minimum level of coverage, reduce the payout delay and introduce 100 per cent. coverage of eligible deposits.

Banking Supervision

Andrew Turner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the extent and scope of his responsibilities and accountability to Parliament in relation to the activity of the arms-length bodies managing the stakes taken by the Government in  (a) the Royal Bank of Scotland,  (b) Halifax/Bank of Scotland,  (c) Lloyds TSB Bank and  (d) Northern Rock; what guidance has been offered in each case in responding to correspondence from hon. Members; and on what matters he will (i) answer questions and (ii) refer such questions to the executive bodies of each institution.

Ian Pearson: As part of the recapitalisation scheme announced on 8 October, it is intended that new non-executive directors will be appointed to the boards of each of RBS and the merged Lloyds TSB/HBOS. These will be independent non-executive directors appointed by the board of each bank. UK Financial Investments, the company which will manage the Treasury's shareholding, will work with those boards to ensure the individuals have appropriate commercial experience. The purpose behind their appointment is to strengthen the board of each bank and to provide independent oversight in respect of governance and other matters in the interests of all the shareholders of each bank.
	Annual reports on UKFI's performance will be laid before Parliament, and the chair and chief executive will make themselves available for scrutiny by the relevant parliamentary committees.
	Northern Rock (in common with all institutions in which UKFI has a stake) will continue to have its own independent board and management team, determining its own strategy.

Christmas

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies have spent on Christmas (a) cards, (b) parties and (c) decorations in the last 12 months.

Angela Eagle: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 21 April 2008,  Official Report , columns 1668-69W.

Departmental Telephone Services

Andrew George: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what guidance his Department has issued to staff responsible for handling calls from the public in respect of  (a) accuracy of responses,  (b) the cost to the caller,  (c) the duration of calls,  (d) customer satisfaction,  (e) access to accurate records,  (f) confidentiality,  (g) access to staff capable of making executive decisions and  (h) fulfilling undertakings to call a customer back; and what targets have been set for (i) each of the above categories and (ii) any other performance measures.

Angela Eagle: All Treasury officials are expected to comply with the provisions of the Civil Service Code and to deal with members of the public and their affairs fairly, efficiently, promptly, effectively and sensitively.

Hotels

Oliver Heald: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department spent on hotel bills in 2007-08.

Angela Eagle: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 27 October 2008,  Official Report, column 780W to the hon. Member for Upper Bann (David Simpson).

Housing: Valuation

Grant Shapps: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  pursuant to the Answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Bromley and Chislehurst (Robert Neill) of 18 June 2008,  Official Report, column 988W, on housing: valuation, if he will place in the Library a copy of the maps and boundaries of each locality within the billing authority of Bromley.
	(2)  pursuant to the Answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 22 July 2008,  Official Report, column 1393W, on housing: valuation, for what reason the numerical co-efficient values used by the Valuation Office Agency are commercially confidential.

Stephen Timms: Valuation Office Agency (VOA) provides valuation services in competition with other providers. Publication of this information would weaken the competitive position of VOA.

Kaupthing Singer and Friedland

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consideration he gave to the partial or complete taking into public ownership of the UK operations of Kaupthing Singer and Friedlander.

Ian Pearson: On 8 October acting on the advice of the bank and FSA, the Chancellor acted to protect the retail depositors in Kaupthing Singer and Friedlander, a UK-based banking subsidiary of Kaupthing Bank.
	The Treasury used the Banking (Special Provisions) Act 2008 to ensure a resolution that preserves financial stability and provides protection and continuity of business for depositors. KSF's Kaupthing Edge deposit business was transferred to ING Direct, a wholly-owned subsidiary of ING Group, which operates through its branch in the UK. The remainder of Kaupthing Singer and Friedlander business was put into administration.
	Any retail depositors eligible to claim under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme whose business has not been transferred to ING Direct will be paid out in full through the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
	This was the right course of action to protect savers, ensure financial stability, and safeguard the interests of the taxpayer.

Members: Correspondence

Ann Winterton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to reply to the letter of 19 September 2008 from the hon. Member for Congleton on behalf of her constituent Mr. Robert Arian.

Ian Pearson: I understand the Financial Services Secretary has now replied to the hon. Lady.

NHS: Consultants

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the recent analysis of consultants' NHS and private incomes funded by the Department of Health, on what occasions in the last five years access to  (a) anonymised,  (b) pseudo-anonymised and  (c) non-anonymised data from tax returns has been granted to (i) non-HM Revenue and Customs personnel and (ii) non-Civil Service personnel; and how many tax returns have been used in this way.

Stephen Timms: In the last five years, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has conducted sample surveys into consultants' earnings on behalf of Department of Health for the tax years 2001-02, 2002-03, 2003-04 and 2004-05, using data derived from HMRC records. HMRC has not released any data from this work to non-HM Revenue and Customs personnel in either pseudo-anonymised or non-anonymised form. Only anonymised outputs were released to Department of Health or to The NHS Information Centre for health and social care. The number of tax records used in each study is as follows:
	
		
			  Income tax year  Count of tax records 
			 2001-02 1,554 
			 2002-03 21,864 
			 2003-04 24,407 
			 2004-05 22,814 
		
	
	In addition, at the request of Department of Health for 2003-04 only, HMRC created an anonymised statistical dataset relating to consultants' earnings. It contained only the data items for 24,407 cases that were necessary to enable an academic researcher acting on behalf of Department of Health to undertake statistical analysis. The researcher was only allowed supervised access to this one anonymised, statistical dataset on HMRC premises, in a stand alone, secure environment.

Performance Appraisal

David Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff in his Department did not achieve an acceptable assessment grade in their annual report in the latest reporting year for which figures are available.

Angela Eagle: During the reporting year 2007-08:
	41 (6 per cent.) staff below SCS received a tranche 3 appraisal marking described as
	"Some significant shortcomings over the performance year that need to be addressed or are being addressed, expected overall to be around 5 to 10% of people across the Treasury."
	5 (7 per cent.) staff in the SCS received a group 4 marking described as
	"Bottom 5-10% of performers—do not receive a bonus and have action taken to address under performance or ongoing poor performance, including the drawing up of a Performance Improvement Plan."

Public Sector: Procurement

David Kidney: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will incorporate British Standards Institution Standard BS ISO 15686-5 on Standardized Method of Life Cycle Costing for Construction Procurement into public sector procurement of new buildings.

Angela Eagle: Government welcome the development of the Standardized Method of Life Cycle Costing for Construction Procurement. Officials from both the Office of Government Commerce and Defence Estates have also been involved with BSI and others in the development of this work.
	Government policy, set out in the HM Treasury Green Book: "Appraisals and Evaluation in Central Government" already requires investment decisions to be made on the basis of value for money over the whole-life of the asset or service.
	As the construction industry moves to adopt the standardised approach then that will help all sectors, including Government, to ensure that decision-making is appropriately informed.

Tax Credit: Crosby

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of children in Crosby constituency who have been taken out of poverty by tax credits.

Stephen Timms: Tax credits play a key role in making work pay and reducing poverty, and have helped to lift 600,000 children out of relative poverty since 1998-99.
	Child poverty statistics are not available on a constituency basis, however, estimates of the number of recipient families with tax credits, including the number of children in these families, by constituency, as at 5 April 2008, are available in the HMRC snapshot publication "Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics. Geographical Analyses. April 2008". This is available on the HMRC website at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-stats.htm
	This shows that 9,700 children in Crosby were benefiting from tax credits in April 2008, though it is not known how many of these have been lifted above the poverty line as a result.

UK Financial Investments

Dai Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what arrangements he has made for the accountability to Parliament of his Department's arms-length company, UK Financial Investments Limited (UKFI); from what budget UKFI will be funded; and what salary will be paid to  (a) the chairperson,  (b) the chief executive and  (c) each of the non-executive board members.

Ian Pearson: Annual reports on UKFI's performance will be laid before Parliament and the chair and chief executive will make themselves available for scrutiny by the relevant parliamentary committees.
	UKFI will be funded by HM Treasury which will in due course determine the remuneration packages of the chair, chief executive and non-executive board members.

UK Financial Investments

Dai Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will appoint non-executive directors from  (a) banking trades' unions,  (b) relevant non-governmental organisations and  (c) elected politicians as non-executive directors to the board of UK Financial Investments Ltd.

Ian Pearson: The Chancellor's letter of 3 November 2008 to the Chairman of the Treasury Committee announced the appointment of Sir Philip Hampton as Chair of UK Financial Investments Ltd (UKFI). Three further non-executive directors will be recruited to the Board of UKFI on the basis of appropriate commercial skill and experience through a process of fair and open competition.

Valuation Office: Information and Communications Technology

Eric Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a copy of the Valuation Office Agency's  (a) Information Asset Register and  (b) E-BAR post-implementation review.

Stephen Timms: The VOA does not currently hold an Information Asset Register. We are currently reviewing this position and associated use of the Government Information Asset Register (as held by Office of Public Sector Information).
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him on 1 September 2008,  Official Report, column 1429W. The post-implementation review is already in the Library.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Oliver Heald: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to answer Question 228544, on pension funds, tabled by the hon. Member for North East Hertfordshire on 15 October 2008.

Ian Pearson: I have now done so and very much regret not having been in a position to do so earlier.

SCOTLAND

Departmental Information Officers

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many full-time equivalent press officers  (a) work for and  (b) provide assistance to his Department.

Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office employs two full-time press officers, a Chief Press Officer based in Edinburgh and a Press Officer based in London.

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many  (a) page hits and  (b) visitors his departmental website received in 2007-08.

Ann McKechin: Between March 2007 and April 2008, the Scotland Office website received 350,006 page hits and 94,714 visitors.

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what the cost of maintaining his departmental website was in 2007-08; and what it is expected to be in 2008-09.

Ann McKechin: Between March 2007 and April 2008, the cost of hosting the Scotland Office website was £550 and the cost of routine maintenance was £2,440. In the period 2008-09, the hosting cost is expected to be £1,700. This is due to the adoption of a new hosting contract that will enable the content management of the website to be brought in-house. The routine maintenance costs for 2008-09 are therefore expected to be minimal.

Departmental NDPBs

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what the remit is of each non-departmental public body sponsored by his Department; and what budget each has been set for  (a) 2008-09,  (b) 2009-10 and  (c) 2010-11.

Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office sponsors the Boundary Commission for Scotland, a small advisory non-departmental public body responsible for reviews of:
	constituencies and regions for the Scottish Parliament;
	constituencies in Scotland for the Westminster Parliament.
	The Commission's budget for 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11 is set out in the Scotland Office 2008 annual report which is available on the Scotland Office website.
	Further information about the Commission can be found on its website:
	www.bcomm-scotland.gov.uk

Dungavel House Immigration Removal Centre: Children

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he plans to make an announcement on the details of an alternative to detention for children at Dungavel.

Ann McKechin: On Thursday 23 October my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced that the UK Border Agency, working with the Scottish Government, Glasgow City Council the Scottish Refugee Council and other partners, is going ahead with an alternatives to detention pilot based in Glasgow. The pilot is due to commence in early 2009 and run for an initial 18-month period, although this will kept under review when the pilot commences.

WOMEN AND EQUALITY

Departmental Official Hospitality

Theresa May: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many official receptions have been hosted by the Government Equalities Office since its creation; what the cost was of each reception; and who attended each reception.

Maria Eagle: Since its creation on 12 October 2007, the Government Equalities Office has hosted nine official receptions.
	I refer the right hon. Member to a previous response on 10 March 2008,  Official Report, column 4W, which lists details up to and including February 2008. Details of the four receptions since February are listed as follows:
	
		
			  Reception  Date  Cost (£) 
			 Women in Business 12 May 2008 3,972 
			 BAME Councillor's Taskforce 19 May 2008 3,300 
			 Launch of a Framework for a Fairer Future (The Equality Bill) 25 June 2008 3,892 
			 Women in Public Appointments 14 July 2008 5,396 
			 Black History Month 3 November 2008 8,731 
			 Total  25,291 
		
	
	All figures are inclusive of VAT.
	Lists of those attending these receptions will be placed in the Commons Library. This will be subject to data protection requirements.

WALES

Departmental Expenditure

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much his Department spent on hotel bills in 2007-08.

Paul Murphy: My Department is split over two sites with a requirement that some staff have to attend meetings in both London and Cardiff as well as supporting Ministers visiting different parts of Wales. For the year 2007-08, £26,879 was spent on hotels.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Agriculture: Loans

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent representations he has received on banks lending to farmers.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 18 November 2008
	DEFRA has not received any recent formal representations about banks lending to farmers. The issue has, on occasion, been informally raised by farming representatives at meetings, but I am not aware of any current concerns and my officials will remain in touch with the sector should any problems arise.

Agriculture: Subsidies

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many holdings claimed payments under the single payment scheme not exceeding 250 euros or equivalent in the last year for which figures are available.

Jane Kennedy: The Rural Payments Agency is the accredited paying agency for the common agricultural policy within England and, as such, does not hold equivalent information for single payment scheme (SPS) claimants in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
	The latest information available for English SPS claimants in 2007 shows that there were 7,475 claims with a value less than €250.

Agriculture: Subsidies

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many and what value of payments were made under the single payment scheme in each of the last three years, broken down by claims  (a) not exceeding £1,  (b) between £1 and £100,  (c) between £100 and £1,000,  (d) between £1,000 and £10,000,  (e) between £10,000 and £50,000,  (f) between £50,000 and £100,000,  (g) between £100,000 and £250,000,  (h) between £250,000 and £500,000,  (i) between £500,000 and £1,000,000,  (j) between £1,000,000 and £2,000,000 and  (k) more than £2,000,000.

Jane Kennedy: The Rural Payments Agency is the accredited paying agency for the common agricultural policy within England and, as such, does not hold information for single payment scheme (SPS) claimants in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
	The following table shows the payments, made by value groups, in England in 2005, 2006 and 2007.
	
		
			   2005  2006  2007 
			  Value group  Number  £  Number  £  Number  £ 
			 0 to 0.99p 69 5.21 8 0.09 5 0.79 
			 £1 to £99.99 18,112 898,534.50 9,186 528,220.46 3,537 231,971.23 
			 £100 to £999.99 27,852 10,562,649.70 26,247 10,664,320.98 25,442 11,165,845.04 
			 £1,000 to £9,999.99 32,398 144,129,777.75 33,327 144,190,623.10 37,465 157,388,954.71 
			 £10,000 to £49,999.99 31,614 735,783,916.99 31,562 733,872,075.35 31,266 713,844,182.21 
			 £50,000 to £99,999.99 5,352 364,965,724.21 5,063 343,586,384.35 4,722 320,080,438.15 
			 £100,000 to £249,999.99 1,668 232,135,957.58 1,470 203,294,728.89 1,380 193,459,905.15 
			 £250,000 to £499,999.99 148 48,156,413.15 125 41,565,049.93 103 34,109,130.32 
			 £500,000 to £999,999.99 20 12,501,319.57 16 10,635,422.49 16 10,581,927.45 
			 £1,000,000 to £1,999,999.99 6 7,063,245.99 5 5,554,856.48 4 4,709,381.74 
			 More than £2,000,000 1 2,173,791.69 1 2,412,054.35 1 2,191,054.26 
			 Total 117,240 1,558,371,336.34 107,010 1,496,303,736.48 103,941 1,447,762,791.05

Departmental Buildings

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Fareham (Mr. Hoban) of 27 October 2008,  Official Report, column 610W, on departmental buildings, whether his Department is paying empty property business rates in relation to 1A Page Street.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The Department having claimed the empty property rates relief permitted by legislation, is now paying empty property business rates in respect of this vacant building.

Domestic Waste: Waste Disposal

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Bromley and Chislehurst (Robert Neill) of 6 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 654-56W, on domestic waste, what advice has been given to the local authorities by  (a) his Department and  (b) the Waste and Resources Action Programme on how to meet the targets to reduce residual household waste.

Jane Kennedy: In order to reduce the amount of residual household waste for disposal, local authorities can promote a range of sustainable activities. These include waste prevention, encouraging re-use, home composting and increasing recycling. Local authorities are actively promoting all these options. WRAP offers a wide range of guidance and practical support to local authorities on these issues.

Domestic Waste: Waste Disposal

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Bromley and Chislehurst (Robert Neill) of 4 November 2008,  Official Report, column 401W, on the Waste and Resources Action Programme, whether the awareness programme included discussions of issues relating to  (a) alternative weekly collection,  (b) household waste collection and  (c) charging for the collection of household waste.

Jane Kennedy: The awareness programme involved meetings at which WRAP staff updated individual political stakeholders on the full range of WRAP's activities. This included the four priorities in WRAP's current business plan: food waste, packaging waste, quality of materials and providing advice to local authorities on devising effective collection schemes.

Floods: Essex

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent steps have been taken to strengthen flood protection measures in Essex.

Jane Kennedy: In the last year, the Environment Agency has invested approximately £22.7 million in Essex. This includes work on defence improvements, maintenance and the construction of new schemes. The Environment Agency has invested in strategic plans and the detailed appraisal of schemes to be constructed in future years. Improvements have been made to the accuracy and availability of flood warnings and the Essex multi-agency flood plan has been improved.

Inspections

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much the Animal Health Executive Agency has spent on training its inspectors in each of the last five years, broken down by training programme.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 18 November 2008
	Animal Health (AH) became an Executive Agency of DEFRA on 1 April 2005 and can only report full year spend for 2005-06, 2006-07 and 2007-08. AH do not hold figures of training by programme; this information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The overall spend figures are shown in the following table:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2005-06 146,699 
			 2006-07 631,909 
			 2007-08 978,113 
			  Note: AH was called the 'State Veterinary Service' upon its inception on 1 April 2005 and was joined by the Dairy Hygiene Inspectorate, the Egg Marketing Inspectorate and the Wildlife Licensing and Registration Service to together become 'Animal Health' on 1 April 2007.  Source: These data were sourced from the Corporate Finance and Human Resources teams, both located in Animal Health Corporate Centre at Worcester.

Public Relations: Forestry Commission

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much the Forestry Commission has spent on  (a) external public affairs and  (b) public relations in each of the last five years.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The Forestry Commission in England engages in a wide range of external communications activities including the promotion of forestry policy and the benefits of sustainable woodland management. It also promotes the public forest estate both as a sustainably managed asset and a major resource for public access and recreation. Promotion and communication of these activities is delivered though a wide range of channels including the media, publications, events, marketing of visitor attractions and on the internet. Indicative costs for this work over the last five years are:
	
		
			   £000 
			 2003-04 529 
			 2004-05 640 
			 2005-06 847 
			 2006-07 958 
			 2007-08 980

Recycling

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if the Environment Agency will take steps to increase the transparency of the final destination of materials collected for recycling once the materials are transferred from local authorities to waste disposal companies.

Jane Kennedy: The Environment Agency is in the process of issuing guidance to Waste Disposal Authorities (WDA) clarifying that they should report details of the final destination of the waste (i.e. the name and address of the final destination facility in the UK) in their existing quarterly Waste Data Flow (WDF) return. A number of WDAs are already providing comprehensive final destination details.

Waste Disposal: Fees and Charges

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickle) of 4 November 2008,  Official Report, column 401W, on waste disposal: council tax, whether the charges levied through waste incentive pilot schemes will be classified as a form of taxation for the purposes of the national statistics.

Jane Kennedy: The Office for National Statistics has responsibility for determining the classification of income for the purposes of national accounts.

Waste Management

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what guidance his Department has issued on the co-mingling of commercial and domestic waste at the point of collection.

Jane Kennedy: None.

Water: Meters

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what modelling his Department has done on the impact of water metering on low income groups; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what his Department's policy is on the future of water metering; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: The Government's water strategy for England "Future Water" was published in February 2008. In that report, an independent review was announced to advise on metering and charging. The review, led by Anna Walker, is currently under way and a call for evidence was issued on 14 November.

Severn Barrage: Nature Conservation

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the effects a Severn Barrage would have in terms of identifying compensatory habitats under the EU Habitats Directive.

Mike O'Brien: I have been asked to reply.
	A high level review of the feasibility of a number of possible compensation and mitigation measures has been undertaken in this first phase of the feasibility study. This review will be published as part of a public consultation early in the new year, subject to an internal review of the feasibility study.
	Should the decision be taken to go ahead with the second phase, then more work is anticipated within the study next year on the scope to mitigate environmental impacts through the construction and operation of tidal power scheme options, and on compensatory measures for impacts that cannot be mitigated.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Terrorist Activity

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent assessment he has made of levels of terrorist activity in Northern Ireland.

Paul Goggins: The 20(th) IMC report confirms that Dissident Republicans remain a serious and continuing threat, intent on killing police officers. The report also makes clear, that while some loyalists want to make progress, this is disappointingly slow, particularly with regard to Decommissioning.

Departmental Policy Priorities

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what his Department's policy priorities are for 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Goggins: My Department's main objective is to support devolved Government in Northern Ireland and to devolve policing and justice when requested to do so by the Assembly. The Northern Ireland Office's Strategic Objectives for the CSR2007 period are published on the NIO website.

Saville Inquiry

Richard Benyon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions the Government has had with Lord Saville or his inquiry staff on the Bloody Sunday report and the time taken to finalise it.

Shaun Woodward: Northern Ireland Office officials regularly meet inquiry staff to discuss corporate governance issues, including financial forecasts. Following news of the recent delay, senior NIO officials met the Inquiry Secretary to discuss urgent measures to control future costs.

Policing and Justice

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent representations he has received on the devolution of policing and justice matters to the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Shaun Woodward: Following yesterday's historic agreement between First and Deputy First Minister on the devolution of policing and justice the Government continue to engage with political parties to help complete devolution in Northern Ireland.

Policing and Justice

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what progress has been made on the devolution of policing and criminal justice matters to the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Shaun Woodward: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for North-West Leicestershire (David Taylor).

Policing and Justice

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what progress has been made on the devolution of policing to the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Shaun Woodward: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for North-West Leicestershire (David Taylor).

Republican Paramilitary Activity

Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the conclusions of the recent report by the Independent Monitoring Commission on levels of republican paramilitary activity.

Paul Goggins: The 20(th) IMC report underlines the significant progress that Northern Ireland has made away from conflict and towards a more normal society. While they have no public support, the threat from dissident republicans is high and they remain determined to kill or injure police officers.

Northern Ireland Executive

Greg Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the effect on the operation of the planning system in Northern Ireland of the fact that the Northern Ireland Executive have not met recently.

Paul Goggins: The operation of the planning system is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland. I am sure that, when it meets, the Executive will give a high priority to issues that have an impact on economic and social development in Northern Ireland.

Prisoners

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the total prison population in Northern Ireland is.

Paul Goggins: At 17 November the total prison population in Northern Ireland was 1,556.

TRANSPORT

Aviation: Crew

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of drug and alcohol testing relating to persons in charge of an aeroplane; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003 introduced alcohol limits for persons performing specified aviation functions, including acting as a pilot of an aircraft. The prescribed limit for pilots is 20 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. In addition the Act empowers the police to test persons performing aviation functions if they have reasonable suspicion that they are over the alcohol limit or are otherwise impaired by drink or drugs.
	Since the introduction of this Bill a number of pilots have been convicted of exceeding the prescribed limit for alcohol. However, there is no evidence of widespread alcohol or drugs abuse by pilots. Nor have there been any accidents or incidents involving UK airlines that have been found to have resulted from alcohol or drugs use by pilots.

Aviation: EU Action

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what plans there are for harmonising type approval of aircraft across the European Union; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what the cost to the applicant to obtain type approval from the Civil Aviation Authority for a new model of aircraft for use in the UK was for each of the last 10 such approved applications; and how long the application process took to complete in each case.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Under EC Regulation 216/2008 the type certification of the majority of aircraft manufactured or registered in EU member states is the responsibility of the European Aviation Safety Agency. This has been the position since 2003 when the agency came into being. However, certain aircraft types listed in annex II to the regulation are not covered by the agency's remit. The aviation authority of the member state in which any such aircraft is registered remains responsible for its type certification or, in the case of aircraft not eligible for a type certificate, the approval of a permit to fly. At this time there are no plans for harmonising for the certification requirements for these aircraft.
	The Department for Transport does not hold detailed information relating to the time taken by the CAA to process each application for a type certificate or a type approval for permits to fly nor the charges made. Such information will be available from the CAA.

Aviation: Exhaust Emissions

Paul Beresford: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the share of UK greenhouse gas emissions which will come from the aviation sector in 2050, calculated on the same basis as the figures in paragraph 1.6 of Annex K of the UK Air Passenger Demand and carbon dioxide forecasts published in November 2007 and on the assumption that the UK achieves an 80 per cent. cut in carbon dioxide emissions by 2050 but with the other forecasts remaining unchanged.

Jim Fitzpatrick: holding answer 17 November 2008
	 "UK Air Passenger Demand and CO2 forecasts" (November 2007) included an estimate of the share of UK emissions accounted for by aviation in 2050. This assumed the UK domestic target for CO2 reductions in 2050 was 60 per cent. below 1990 levels and that abatement effort to meet the target was predominantly in the rest of the economy, with aviation abatement taking the form of fuel efficiency (resulting from fleet renewal and technological development) and air traffic management improvements, in line with the assumptions underlying the forecasts.
	On the basis of the same assumptions used in the November 2007 document, but taking an 80 per cent. reduction target, the share for aviation in 2050 would be around 35 per cent. To account for the non-CO2 climate change effects of aviation, consistent with the 2007 document, for simplicity a radiative forcing factor of 1.9 could be applied to aviation's CO2 emissions. On this basis, aviation's share would rise to around 41 per cent. The relativity between the CO2 and non-CO2 impacts may change over this time frame which would imply a different radiative forcing factor.
	These estimates are based on central emissions forecasts. Forecasts over such a long term time frame are subject to significant uncertainty. Adopting alternative underlying assumptions to reflect these uncertainties would therefore change the estimate of aviation's share of emissions.
	Under an 80 per cent. target, not all parts of the UK economy would be expected to contribute equally to the total emissions reductions required. Sectors that are more carbon intensive, or in which abatement options are expensive or particularly difficult, would be expected to make up an increasing share of total UK emissions over time.
	It should be noted that the Department for Transport is currently updating its forecasts of aviation emissions for all years to 2050 and these are expected to be published before the end of the year. The estimate of aviation's share of emissions will therefore be updated in line with those new estimates.
	The basis of UK aviation CO2 forecasts is estimates of emissions from UK sales of aviation fuels. This is consistent with the UK's reporting of international aviation emissions to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Estimates of emissions from fuel used for international aviation do not form part of the UK's national emissions inventory, as there has been no international agreement on how to allocate them to individual countries.

Dartford-Thurrock Crossing: Tolls

Michael Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the revenue from the new toll charges for the Dartford Crossing in each of the next three years; and what estimate he has made of the amount to be for gone in revenue through the discount to Dartford and Thurrock residents in each year.

Paul Clark: holding answer 18 November 2008
	 In our 2006 consultation document on the proposed new charging regime we estimated that revenues could increase by around £7 million in the first year, or around 10 per cent., though this depends on how many users opt to pay by tag and therefore continue to pay £1.00 for cars. Our 2008 consultation document on the local discount scheme gave an indicative estimate that the local resident discount scheme could reduce revenues by about £2 million, depending on high levels of take-up by those eligible. On this basis the overall increase in revenues would be around £5 million per year.

Driving: Licensing

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  if he will delay implementation of the provisions of the Second EC Driving Licence Directive until the proposed network of multi-purpose test centres has been established;
	(2)  if he will permit the on-road and off-road testing of motorcycle drivers to take place separately until the proposed network of multi-purpose test centres has been established.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The implementation of the new practical motorcycle test has been deferred until the end of March 2009 to enable the development of new solutions for providing a wider range of locations from which to offer the test.
	The Driving Standards Agency is discussing with motorcycling stakeholders a testing arrangement based on separate off and on-road modules. A formal consultation will be necessary if a modular test is to be published.

Maritime and Coastguard Agency: Finance

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many times since the formation of his Department the Maritime and Coastguard Agency has sought additional funding to cover budgetary shortfalls; how much funding was  (a) sought and  (b) granted on each occasion; and what the extent of the budgetary shortfall was in each case.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Maritime and Coastguard Agency's (MCA) budget is under continuous review through dialogue between the Agency and the Department for Transport, taking account of the ministerial targets and other priorities. It is through this process (including routine annual estimates, winter and spring supplementary reporting) that agreed budgetary adjustments are made including both increases and decreases in expenditure and increases and decreases in income generated. This also includes funding transfers to and from other Agencies/Departments reflecting changes in work requirements.
	Since the formation of the Department for Transport in 2002 the following adjustments were made to the MCA's budgetary position via the winter and spring supplementary process.
	
		
			  £000 
			   Winter supplementary  Spring supplementary 
			 2002-03 — 1,200 
			 2003-04 10,924 1,210 
			 2004-05 12,958 — 
			 2005-06 2,346 - 4,217 
			 2006-07 — 3,107 
			 2007-08 170 13,310

Park and Ride Schemes: Finance

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much funding was provided from central Government to local government for the creation of park and ride schemes in the latest period for which figures are available; and what monitoring processes are in place to assess the effectiveness of such expenditure.

Paul Clark: Park and ride schemes in English local authorities outside London are one of a number of measures generally funded through the integrated transport block, which the Department for Transport allocates to support local authorities' local transport plans (LTPs). Allocations total £576 million for 2008-09.
	During the first LTP period (2001-06), local transport authorities in England (outside London) spent a total of £72.5 million of DfT funding on improving 92 existing park and ride facilities and delivering 76 new park and ride schemes.
	LTP guidance issued by the Department emphasises that it is the responsibility of local authorities to put systems in place to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of such schemes. In addition, DfT commissions research periodically into the overall effectiveness of the integrated transport block funding: the latest findings from 2006 indicate that projects undertaken with this funding represent good value for public money.

Roads: Accidents

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many road traffic collisions resulting in death or serious injury and involving one or more drivers with a recorded blood alcohol level of between 50 and 80 mg per 100 ml of blood were recorded in each of the last 10 years, broken down by police authority.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Information on the blood alcohol level of drivers involved in personal injury road accidents is not routinely collected.
	The level of alcohol in the blood of road accident fatalities aged 16 or over who die within 12 hours of a road accident is provided by coroners in England and Wales and by Procurators Fiscal in Scotland. This information is only available for around two-thirds of motor vehicle drivers killed in personal injury road accidents. Information on the blood alcohol level of drivers who are not killed is not collected.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many miles of new roads were added to the Strategic Road Network in each of the last 10 years.

Paul Clark: The following table shows the total miles of new trunk road and motorway that have been added to the Strategic Road Network by the Highways Agency in each of the last 10 years.
	
		
			  Miles 
			  Calendar year  Scheme additional length to SRN  Scheme additional lane capacity to SRN  Total extra capacity 
			 1997 38.6 39.2 77.8 
			 1998 12.3 41.4 53.7 
			 1999 15.6 13.4 29.0 
			 2000 0.0 22.4 22.4 
			 2001 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 2002 19.0 19.0 19.0 
			 2003 26.6 27.5 54.1 
			 2004 10.9 16.8 27.7 
			 2005 7.9 13.4 21.3 
			 2006 15.3 22.5 37.8 
			 2007 10.3 15.9 26.2 
			 Total 156.5 212.5 369.0 
		
	
	The data do not take into account any de-trunking/realignment of the Strategic Road Network which may be within the scope of schemes.
	The data are the result of an exercise carried out by the Highways Agency over the spring of 2008 to verify information relating to lane km of motorway and non-motorways built since 1997.
	This table therefore supersedes any previous tables produced by the Highways Agency.

Safety Service Delivery and Logistics Group

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the responsibilities of the Safety, Service Delivery and Logistics Group are; what projects the group is conducting; and from which budget project expenditure is met in each case.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Safety, Service Delivery and Logistics (SSDL) Group was created on 1 April 2007 as part of a Department for Transport (DFT) reorganisation. The new structure combined the former DVO Group with GCDA (Government Car and Despatch Agency), the Road and Vehicles Safety Standards (RVSS) directorate and the Logistics and Freight policy division. In April 2008, SSDL was joined by the Information Management Directorate (IMD). The Group brings policy and delivery agendas closer together and provides added momentum to the pace of change needed to deliver the Department's objectives.
	The SSDL Group aims to be a leader in modern and efficient public service while promoting road safety, effective logistics, and a cleaner environment. The Group works closely with its partners to deliver quality services to customers.
	The SSDL agencies' current capital plans are all included in their individual business plans, which are available in the House Library.
	Of the five SSDL agencies, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), Driving Standards Agency (DSA) and the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) are classified as trading funds and capital expenditure is therefore funded from repayable loans which are provided to them from the DFT or from statutory fees.
	VCA and GCDA are funded centrally by the Department.

Shipping: Safety

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the Third Maritime Safety Package will be implemented in the UK.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The negotiations are still continuing between the EU member states and the European Parliament on the Third Maritime Safety Package. If agreement on the package is reached in the next few weeks, the UK will implement most of the legislation by 2011.

Transport: Hazardous Materials

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the Hazardous and Noxious Substance Convention will be implemented in the UK.

Jim Fitzpatrick: There are a number of technical problems with the text of the convention that have prevented the UK, together with many other EU member states and third country states, from ratifying the Hazardous and Noxious Substances (HNS) Convention, 1996. As a result, the requirements for bringing the convention into force internationally have not yet been met.
	In order to correct the inherent problems with the current convention, the international maritime community has agreed to develop a protocol, the text of which was agreed at the Legal Committee of the International Maritime Organisation in October 2009. The UK will ratify the amended convention as soon as possible after the protocol has been agreed at a Diplomatic Conference (expected to take place in 2010).

Transport: York

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much local transport grant was given to the City of York unitary authority in each year since its creation.

Paul Clark: The Department for Transport has provided the following grants for local transport to the City of York since it was established as a unitary authority in April 1996 in the following two tables.
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Integrated transport block  Highways maintenance  Other funding( 1)  Total local transport funding 
			 2007-08 4.141 1.419 0.247 5.807 
			 2006-07 4.478 1.386 0.514 6.378 
			 2005-06 4.900 1.325 — 6.225 
			 2004-05 4.840 1.462 0.840 7.142 
			 2003-04 4.700 1.281 2.200 8.181 
			 2002-03 4.400 1.155 1.139 6.694 
			 2001-02 4.900 1,095 — 5.995 
			 2000-01 1.550 0.712 — 2.262 
			 (1) Other funding covers detrunking, road safety grants, reward funding, re-allocated supplementary credit approvals (SCA), bus real time information. 
		
	
	Funding allocations made prior to local transport plan funding.
	
		
			  £ million 
			   Transport supplementary grant  Annual capital guideline  Supplementary credit approval  Total 
			 1999-2000 0.338 0.450 1.195 1.983 
			 1998-99 0.168 0.189 0.770 1.127 
			 1997-98 (1)0.706 (1)0.706 0.800 2.212 
			 1996-97 (1)1.284 (1)1.284 0.772 3.34 
			 (1) Covers funding of £3.238 million for the Peasholme Green Bridge major scheme. 
		
	
	Revenue expenditure on transport is generally supported through the Department for Communities and Local Government's Formula Grant.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many UK troops have been deployed as part of the operational mentor and liaison team programme in Afghanistan since September 2007; and how many have been killed or injured in each battalion.

John Hutton: Seven UK operational mentoring and liaison teams (OMLTs) work alongside the Afghan National Army in Helmand province. These teams total between 250 and 300 personnel at any one time. Approximately 800 personnel have undertaken this role since September 2007.
	Fatalities and injuries are not recorded centrally by tasking, and troops from the infantry battalions providing OMLTs undertake other tasks as well. The three battalions that have provided OMLT teams since September 2007 have suffered the following number of fatalities overall:
	2nd Battalion, The Yorkshire Regiment (Herrick 7): 3
	1st Battalion, The Royal Irish Regiment (Herrick 8): 2
	1st Battalion, The Rifles (Herrick 9): 0
	For reasons of medical confidentiality, it is our policy not to produce a detailed breakdown of injuries by unit. However the Ministry of Defence does publish information regarding fatalities and statistical details of non-fatal injuries suffered by UK service personnel and civilian employees in Afghanistan on a fortnightly basis, two weeks in arrears. This can be found on the departmental website at the following address:
	http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/FactSheets/OperationsFactsheets/OperationsInAfghanistanBritishFatalities.htm

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether there have been any instances of aerial attacks on civilians in Afghanistan by British aircraft as a result of  (a) error and  (b) deception; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: I have nothing to add to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Leyton and Wanstead (Harry Cohen) on 20 October 2008,  Official Report, column 118W.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the procedures are for ensuring that British military air strikes are not directed against civilians in Afghanistan.

John Hutton: The deliberate targeting of civilians would represent a direct contravention of international law. A wide range of checks and balances exist within the UK military chain of command to ensure that this can never happen. These include provision of absolutely clear direction into theatre and the deployment of legal and other experts to ensure this direction is followed.
	Sadly, on a very small number of occasions, civilian casualties inadvertently result from the use of air-launched weapons. The UK, along with our partners in the International Security Assistance Force, makes every effort possible to minimise the risks of this occurring. Release of air-launched weapons is coordinated by controllers on the ground, who are fully trained in the use of lethal force, law of armed conflict and the appropriate rules of engagement. Controllers and pilots communicate with each other to ensure that the target is accurately identified, using target designating equipment where appropriate, and the weapon and method of attack is selected so as to minimise any risk of civilian deaths or injury, or damage to civilian property.
	The risk of civilians becoming involved in military operations is greatly exacerbated by the tactics employed by the insurgent forces, who frequently attack UK and ISAF forces from within civilian locations.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether Harrier will be subject to a programme review in 2009 if it is withdrawn from Afghanistan  (a) before and  (b) after 1 April 2009.

Quentin Davies: holding answer 17 November 2008
	We keep all our programmes under regular review as part of our planning process. This applies irrespective of operational deployments.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Pakistani military personnel are  (a) assigned,  (b) attached and  (c) embedded with UK armed forces in Regional Command South.

John Hutton: There are currently no personnel from the Pakistani armed forces assigned, attached or embedded with UK armed forces in Regional Command (South).

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many anthropologists are assigned to work with UK armed forces operating in Afghanistan.

John Hutton: There are no anthropologists assigned to work with UK armed forces operating in Afghanistan. Training on cultural issues is, however, provided to UK forces prior to their deployment to Afghanistan.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many weeks passed between  (a) the date of injury and the date of the decision that compensation was due and  (b) the date of the decision that compensation was due and the date of first payment in the cases of each of the 18 personnel who were very seriously injured in Afghanistan in 2006 who have received compensation;
	(2)  how many weeks passed between  (a) the date of injury and the date of the decision that compensation was due and  (b) the date of the decision that compensation was due and the date of the first payment in the case of each of the 13 personnel who were seriously injured in Afghanistan in 2006 who have received compensation;
	(3)  how many weeks passed between  (a) the date of injury and the date of the decision that compensation was due and  (b) the date of the decision that compensation was due and the date of the first payment in the case of each of the 40 personnel who were seriously injured in Afghanistan in 2007 who have received compensation;
	(4)  how many weeks passed between  (a) the date of injury and the date of the decision that compensation was due and  (b) the date of the decision that compensation was due and the date of the first payment in the cases of each of the 23 personnel who were very seriously injured in Afghanistan in 2007 who have received compensation.

Kevan Jones: The time between an individual's date of injury and the date on which they make a claim for compensation under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) varies from person to person. For this reason, any figures produced on the time between the date of injury and the date of the decision that compensation is due will be misleading. The time between the date each claim was registered under the AFCS and the date of the decision that compensation is due, has been calculated for personnel that were seriously injured (SI) or very seriously injured (VSI) in Afghanistan during 2006 and 2007.
	For data protection purposes and to maintain anonymity of claimants, information cannot be provided at individual level. Table 1 as follows presents the median length of time in weeks between the date on which a claim was registered under the AFCS and the date of the decision that compensation was due, for personnel with a cleared claim under the AFCS. Figures are presented by severity and year of injury in Afghanistan.
	
		
			  Table 1: Median number of weeks between the date a claim was registered and the date of the decision that compensation was due, by severity and year of injury in Afghanistan( 1) 
			   Number of weeks (median) 
			  2006  
			 Seriously Injured 10 
			 Very Seriously Injured 13 
			   
			  2007  
			 Seriously Injured 14 
			 Very Seriously Injured 14 
			 (1) Figures are based on those that have had a decision made following their claim under the AFCS: 8 out of the 13 personnel who were SI and 16 of the 18 personnel who were VSI in Afghanistan during 2006, and 31 of the 40 personnel who were SI and 21 of the 23 personnel who were VSI in Afghanistan during 2007. 
		
	
	For data protection purposes and to maintain anonymity of claimants, information cannot be provided at individual level. Information on actual date of compensation payment under the AFCS is normally recorded on the joint personnel administration (JPA) database. JPA roll-out for the RAF, Navy and Army was 1 April 2006, 1 November 2006 and 1 April 2007 respectively. Payment dates prior to JPA roll-out could be collected only at disproportionate cost. Table 2 presents the median length of time in days between the date of the decision that compensation was due under the AFCS and the actual date of payment, for those recorded on JPA. 63 out of 76 had a recorded payment date on JPA. Figures are presented by severity and year of injury in Afghanistan.
	
		
			  Table 2: Median number of days between the date of the decision that compensation was due, and the actual date of payment, by severity and year of injury in Afghanistan( 1, 2) 
			   Number of  days  (median) 
			  2006  
			 Seriously Injured 9 
			 Very Seriously Injured 8 
			   
			  2007  
			 Seriously Injured 7 
			 Very Seriously Injured 7 
			 (1) Figures are based on those that have had a decision made following their claim under the AFCS: 8 out of the 13 personnel who were SI and 16 of the 18 personnel who were VSI in Afghanistan during 2006, and 31 of the 40 personnel who were SI and 21 of the 23 personnel who were VSI in Afghanistan during 2007. (2) Figures are based on those that have payment details on JPA: two out of the eight personnel who were SI and 10 out of the 16 personnel who were VSI in Afghanistan during 2006, and 30 out of the 31 personnel who were SI and all of those VSI in Afghanistan during 2007.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how much compensation has been paid to each of the 13 personnel who were seriously injured in Afghanistan in 2006 who have received compensation;
	(2)  how much compensation was awarded to each of the 40 personnel who were seriously injured in Afghanistan in 2007 who have received compensation;
	(3)  how much compensation was awarded to each of the 23 personnel who were very seriously injured in Afghanistan in 2007 who have received compensation.

Kevan Jones: Information on compensation amounts paid out to those personnel that were seriously injured or very seriously injured in Afghanistan during 2006 and 2007 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many of the 13 personnel who were seriously injured in Afghanistan in 2006 have subsequently left military service; how many weeks passed from the date of the injury to the date of their leaving military service in each case; and whether each serviceman or servicewoman received compensation for their injury;
	(2)  how many of the 40 personnel who were seriously injured in Afghanistan in 2007 have subsequently left military service; how many weeks passed from the date of the injury to the date of their leaving military service in each case; and whether each serviceman or servicewoman received compensation for their injury;
	(3)  how many of the 18 personnel who were very seriously injured in Afghanistan in 2006 have subsequently left military service; how many weeks passed from the date of the injury to the date of their leaving military service in each case; and whether each serviceman or servicewoman who left in such circumstances received compensation for their injury;
	(4)  how many of the 23 personnel who were very seriously injured in Afghanistan in 2007 have subsequently left military service; how many weeks passed from the date of the injury to the date of their leaving military service in each case; and whether each serviceman or servicewoman who left in such circumstances received compensation for their injury.

Kevan Jones: Of the 13 personnel who were seriously injured in Afghanistan during 2006, six personnel have subsequently left service as at 13 November 2008. Five of these personnel were awarded compensation following an in-service claim under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS), the remaining one person went on to have a claim automatically generated for them following a medical discharge. The outcome of this claim is currently pending.
	Of the 18 personnel who were very seriously injured in Afghanistan during 2006, two personnel have subsequently left service as at 13 November 2008. Both were awarded compensation under the AFCS following an in-service claim registered whiles they were still serving.
	Of the 40 personnel who were seriously injured in Afghanistan during 2007, two personnel have subsequently left service as at 13 November 2008, Both were awarded compensation under the AFCS following an in-service claim registered while they were still serving.
	Of the 23 personnel who were very seriously injured in Afghanistan during 2007, two personnel have subsequently left service as at 13 November 2008. Both were awarded compensation under the AFCS following an in-service claim registered while they were still serving.
	For data protection purposes and to maintain anonymity of claimants, information cannot be provided on the time between the date of injury and the date of exit from service at individual level.
	The following table presents the median length of time in weeks between the date of injury and date of exit from service for personnel that have subsequently left service following their injury. Figures are presented by severity and year of injury in Afghanistan.
	
		
			  Median number of weeks between date of injury and date of exit from service, by severity and year of injury in Afghanistan for those that had left service by 13 November 2008 
			   Number of weeks (median) 
			  2006  
			 Seriously injured 58 
			 Very seriously injured 79 
			   
			  2007  
			 Seriously injured 70 
			 Very seriously injured 76

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of Scimitar armoured reconnaisance vehicles in Afghanistan have been serviceable in each of the last 12 months.

John Hutton: The following table shows availability of the Scimitar Armoured Reconnaissance Vehicle in Afghanistan for each of the last 12 months.
	
		
			   Average availability (percentage) 
			 November 2007 81 
			 December 2007 89 
			 January 2008 (1)— 
			 February 2008 78 
			 March 2008 77 
			 April 2008 49 
			 May 2008 36 
			 June 2008 24 
			 July 2008 53 
			 August 2008 37 
			 September 2008 87 
			 October 2008 75 
			 (1) No figures available 
		
	
	Recognising that Scimitar availability in Afghanistan is much lower in summer due to extremely hot and dusty conditions, rapid modifications have been made this year to improve availability. The Scimitar vehicle is also about to undergo an urgent package of measures to improve its performance and availability in hot, high and dusty conditions.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much the NATO and allied military presence in Afghanistan cost in each year for which figures are available.

John Hutton: I am only able to comment on those costs relating to the MOD and NATO common-funded costs. I am not able to comment on (and nor does the Department hold information concerning) individual allies' operational costs. MOD identifies the costs of UK operations in terms of the net additional costs it has incurred, which includes the costs that the Department would have incurred regardless of the operation taking place, such as wages and salaries. Reduced costs on activities that have not occurred because of the operation—training exercises for example—are also taken into account in arriving at the net figures.
	Operational costs are calculated on an annual basis which are then audited by the National Audit Office. The UK operational costs for Afghanistan are set out in the following table:
	
		
			  £ million 
			   2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  Total to date 
			 Operations in Afghanistan total resource costs 187 236 36 58 148 560 1,071 2,296 
			 Expenditure on capital equipment 34 75 10 9 51 178 433 790 
			  
			 Total 221 311 46 67 199 738 1,504 3,086 
		
	
	NATO common-funded costs for Afghanistan including the UK's share (which is incorporated in the operational costs) are set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Financial year  NATO cost( 1)  (£ million)  Approximate UK share  (percentage)  Approximate UK  financial contribution  (£ million) 
			 2003-04 35.771 12 4.293 
			 2004-05 76.572 12 9.187 
			 2005-06 81.488 12 9.779 
			 2006-07 121.479 12 14.577 
			 2007-08 162.291 12 16.222 
			 (1) Running costs plus capital investment

Armed Forces: Divorce

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 19 February 2007,  Official Report, column 302W, what proportion of armed forces personnel disabled through injury or service were divorced in each year between 2002 and 2006, broken down by  (a) those aged 24 years old and younger,  (b) 25 to 34 years old,  (c) 35 to 44 years old,  (d) 45 to 54 years old and  (e) those 55 years old and older; what assessment he has made of recent trends in divorce rates for service personnel who have seen active service; and if he will make a statement.

Kevan Jones: Information on numbers of armed forces personnel classed as disabled and divorced is not held centrally and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	There has been no recent assessment of divorce rate trends for Service personnel.

Armed Forces: Labour Turnover

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what the  (a) inflow and  (b) outflow of helicopter crew pilots was in each month in the last three years, broken down by helicopter type;
	(2)  what the  (a) inflow and  (b) outflow of helicopter crew pilots has been in each year since 2003, broken down by helicopter type.

Kevan Jones: The information requested is not held centrally or available in the format requested. however some information is held by the single services and this is as follows:
	 Roy al Navy
	Helicopter crew inflow into the Royal Navy, by type of helicopter, between 1 April 2003 and 20 September 2008 is as follows:
	
		
			   Inflow 
			 Sea King 4 62 
			 Sea King 5/7 4 
			 Lynx Mk8 44 
			 Lynx Mk7 9 
			 Merlin 28 
		
	
	Pilot outflow from the Royal Navy in the period requested is not held in such a manner to allow a breakdown between pilots of fixed wing or rotary wing aircraft.
	 Army
	Army inflow to trained strength from training is as follows:
	
		
			  Inflow 
			   2006  2007  2008 
			   Attack helicopter  Lynx  Gazelle  Attack helicopter  Lynx  Gazelle  Attack helicopter  Lynx  Gazelle 
			 January — — — — — — — — — 
			 February — 5 — — 5 — — — — 
			 March — — 2 — — — — — 3 
			 April — — — — 4 1 — 3 — 
			 May 4 12 3   
			 June — — — 7 — — 4 — 2 
			 July — 6 — — 2 — — 5 — 
			 August — — — — — — — — — 
			 September — 4 — — 7 — — 4 — 
			 October 6 — — — — 3 — — 1 
			 November — 3 — 9 — — — — — 
			 December — — — — 3 — 13 3 — 
			   
			 Total 10 30 5 16 21 4 17 15 6 
		
	
	Army outflow is as follows:
	
		
			  Outflow 
			   2006  2007  2008 
			   Attack helicopter  Lynx  Gazelle  Attack helicopter  Lynx  Gazelle  Attack helicopter  Lynx  Gazelle 
			 January — 3 2 — 6 1 1 2 — 
			 February — 3 — — 4 — — 4 1 
			 March — 1 2 — 3 1 2 2 — 
			 April — 3 — 1 5 — — 3 1 
			 May — 7 2 — 3 — 1 4 1 
			 June 1 3 1 — 3 2 — 4 3 
			 July — 1 1 — 3 — 1 5 — 
			 August 1 4 1 1 1 — 2 3 — 
			 September — 3 3 1 1 1 — 1 — 
			 October — 3 1 1 1 1 2 1 — 
			 November — 3 1 — 2 1 — 5 — 
			 December — 3 — — 1 — 1 3 — 
			   
			 Total 2 37 14 4 33 7 10 37 6 
		
	
	 RAF
	RAF inflow to trained strength from training, between August 2005 and August 2008 is as follows:
	
		
			   Inflow 
			 Chinook 86 
			 Puma 42 
			 Merlin 46 
			 Sea King 41 
		
	
	RAF outflow between April 2003 and March 2006 was some 100 helicopter pilots.

Armed Forces: Self-mutilation

Joan Humble: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps have been taken at the Duchess of Kent Psychiatric Hospital to ensure that medical staff are trained in the procedures to be employed following an assessment that military personnel about to be discharged back to barracks may be at risk of self-harm.

Kevan Jones: The Duchess of Kent Psychiatric Hospital was closed in 2003 as part of the Defence Medical Services' move (in accordance with clinical best practice) towards providing treatment regionally, primarily through enhanced out-patient facilities and the contracting-out of in-patient treatment. The military community treatment capability was enhanced and the Defence Medical Services provide service personnel with speedy access to skilled and effective help and treatment that is flexible and based around their individual needs. A military Department of Community Mental Health (DCMH) is located a short distance from the old hospital ward.
	Defence Medical Services mental health personnel undertake the same training, and obtain the same qualifications as their civilian counterparts. Psychologists and social workers who work for the defence mental health services are directly recruited fully trained, and all personnel engage in continuing professional development as recommended by the various professional bodies (such as the Royal College of Psychiatrists; Nursing and Midwifery Council and British Psychological Society). All training is conducted under the direction and administration of the Defence Postgraduate Medical Deanery and this organisation is advised by the Defence Consultant Advisor in Psychiatry.
	The military Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMHs) assess all service personnel referred to them for risk in accordance with NICE (National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence) Clinical Guidelines which include the identification of clinical and demographic features known to be associated with risk of further self harm and/or suicide. An appropriate care plan is agreed with the individual, in consultation with the unit medical officer and appropriately supervised treatment is implemented, and similar procedures take place where individuals are being discharged from in-patient care.
	Mental health practitioners will also alert the chain of command where there is clear risk of death or serious harm to the patient or others, or where reasons underpinning the suicidal intent may also impact on others, balancing the issues of confidentiality and consent against the duty of care to the patient, as well as to others who might be harmed by a suicide attempt.

Army

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the relative costs of a Gurkha infantry battalion and an English line infantry battalion in light of current policy and recent legal judgments.

Kevan Jones: The cost of a Gurkha infantry is broadly in line with that of British line infantry battalion.
	I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement made on 8 March 2007,  Official Report, columns 141-42WS which explained that Gurkhas are now treated exactly the same as their UK recruited counterparts and receive the same benefits, with certain exceptions to satisfy the Nepalese Government.
	The recent legal judgments in relation to pensions and immigration have had no impact on the cost of serving Gurkhas.

Departmental Aviation

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many flights have been taken by his Department's civil servants of each grade in  (a) first class,  (b) business class and  (c) economy in each month of 2008;
	(2)  how much  (a) first class,  (b) business class and  (c) economy class air travel for his Department's civil servants cost his Department in the last 12 months; and what criteria are used to determine the class in which such staff fly.

Kevan Jones: The information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. All travel is conducted in accordance with the guidelines in Joint Service Publication (JSP) 800: Defence Movements and Transportation Regulations, Volume 2, Passenger Travel Instructions which sets out the criteria to be applied, dependent upon rank and the length of the flight involved.

Departmental Electronic Equipment

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department and its agencies have spent on  (a) flat screen televisions,  (b) DVD players and  (c) stereo equipment in each of the last three years.

Kevan Jones: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. We apply the same principles to buying televisions, DVD players and stereo equipment that we do to buying all goods or services. These principles include securing best value for money, ensuring probity and accountability, enabling competition wherever possible, and ensuring compliance with the relevant provisions of UK and EU law.

Departmental Information Officers

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many full-time equivalent press officers  (a) work and  (b) provide assistance for his Department.

Kevan Jones: There are currently 108 full-time press officers listed in the Chief Office of Information's White Book for the Ministry of Defence not including those in agencies.
	Press offices include civilian and military staff working across the Department (including within the single services) and are defined as those who directly interface with national or regional media on news issues.

Departmental Land

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many and what percentage of the overseas estate is in each grade, broken down by location.

Kevan Jones: Of the overseas estate, only living accommodation is graded for either condition or charge. Grade for charge (GfC) is an assessment of the chargeable condition of accommodation, along with other factors such as its size, location and closeness to amenities.
	Other than GfC no separate assessment is made of the condition of all 71,000 service family accommodation (SFA) properties worldwide. Overseas SFA is at the following GfC:
	
		
			   G1fC  G2fC  G3fC  G4fC 
			  Country  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage 
			 Cyprus — — 504 22 173 8 1,211 54 
			 Falkland/Ascension Islands — — — — — — 96 100 
			 Germany 2,058 16 5,943 47 3,508 30 1,061 8 
			 Gibraltar 52 11 96 21 87 19 194 43 
			 Rest of the world 187 10 658 35 430 23 562 30 
			 Total 2,297 13 7,211 42 4,198 24 3,124 18 
		
	
	As well as being assessed for its grade for charge, all single living accommodation (SLA) is also separately assessed for its physical condition and 'scale', as defined in Joint Service Publication 319 which is available to view at
	http://www.defence-estates.mod.uk/publications/isp/isp315/volume1/index.php.
	This methodology, which excludes environmental and location factors, is considered a better indicator of the physical condition of the accommodation.
	As at June 2008, overseas SLA bed-spaces were at the following grade.
	
		
			   Grade 1  Grade 2  Grade 3  Grade 4 
			  Country  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage 
			 Cyprus 26 2 — — 614 43 782 55 
			 Falkland/Ascension Islands 10 0.3 — — — — 3,438 99.7 
			 Germany 2,639 17 1,547 10 4,746 31 6,504 42 
			 Gibraltar — — 225 52 84 19 128 29 
			 Rest of the world 32 2 44 3 59 3 1,523 92 
			 Total 2,707 12 1,816 8 5,503 25 12,375 55 
		
	
	We accept that some service accommodation is not of a standard that our service personnel and their families deserve and steps are being taken to address this. Over the next decade £8.4 billion will be spent on accommodation, of which over £3 billion will be on improving and upgrading accommodation.

Departmental Manpower

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 29 October 2008,  Official Report, column 1032W, how many staff in his Department are receiving full salaries without being allocated work.

Kevan Jones: As at 5 November 2008, there were some 525 MOD civil servants who were in the civilian redeployment pool because their substantive posts had reached an end, or because they were returning from overseas or extended absence. A further 446 were in the redeployment pool because their posts were due to end within six months. Those staff receive preferential consideration for posts. While in the redeployment pool, staff whose substantive posts have ended remain in their posts, for which they continue to receive their normal salaries. They continue to be funded and managed by their previous management, who assist them with their development and job search and employ them on appropriate temporary tasks. As I explained in my answer on 21 October,  Official R eport, column 191W, while there may exceptionally be occasions where such temporary work is not available, that situation is continuously changing and is not recorded centrally.

Departmental Manpower

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many staff in his Department did not achieve an acceptable assessment grade in their annual report in the latest reporting year for which figures are available.

Kevan Jones: For the 2007-08 reporting year 93 MOD civilian staff were recorded as not receiving a performance award due to unsatisfactory work performance that was subject to the Department's restoring efficiency procedures.
	This figure excludes MOD trading funds and agencies and does not include specialist occupational groups such as teachers, NHS grades, fire fighters and policeman, for whom records are not held centrally.

Departmental NDPBs

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the remit is of each non-departmental public body sponsored by his Department; and what budget each has been set for  (a) 2008-09,  (b) 2009-10 and  (c) 2010-11.

Kevan Jones: The remit of each of the non-departmental public bodies sponsored by the MOD can be found in the supplementary document on NDPBs to the MOD annual report and accounts 2007-08, which can be found on the MOD internet site at the following link:
	http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/AboutDefence/CorporatePublications/AnnualReports/MODAnnualReports0708/SupplementaryDocuments200708.htm
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 30 October 2008,  Official  Report, column 1230W, in respect of funding of Executive NDPBs. The advisory NDPBs sponsored by the Department incur little or no expenditure and are resourced from within the Department.

European Carrier Group Interoperability Initiative

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a copy of the Declaration of Intent with EU Partners on the European Carrier Group Interoperability Initiative.

Quentin Davies: I shall place a copy of the Declaration of Intent in the Library of the House.

Future Large Aircraft: Safety

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether a fuel inerting gas system will be fitted to the UK A400M fleet.

Quentin Davies: Yes, with the exception of one development aircraft that will either be retro-fitted with fuel-tank inerting at a later date, or if this proves impossible, excluded from use in areas of significant operational threat.

Future Surface Combatant

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the future roles are projected for each variant of the Future Surface Combatant.

Quentin Davies: holding answer 17 November 2008
	It is currently planned that the Future Surface Combatant will replace and build on the capabilities of the T22 and T23 frigates. The programme is still in the concept phase, and the requirements for numbers and variants have not yet been finalised. The future roles to be undertaken by FSC have yet to be fully defined but will be coherent with the capabilities called for in the 2004 Defence White Paper, 'Delivering Security in a Changing World, Future Capabilities' (Cm 6269).

Military Aircraft

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which close air support capabilities provided by Harriers are not able to be provided by Tornados.

Kevan Jones: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 10 November 2008,  Official Report, column 775W.

Military Aircraft: Training

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much live training with submarines have (a) Merlin HM MK1 and (b) Nimrod MR2 crews have undertaken in each month of the last three years.

Kevan Jones: The amount of time spent live training by Merlin HM MKl and Nimrod MR2 crews with submarines over the last three years has been recorded as follows:
	
		
			  Merlin HM MKl 
			  Hours:Minutes 
			   2006  2007  2008 
			 January 9:10 12:50 12:35 
			 February 11:30 27:55 80:35 
			 March 5:40 40:20 63:15 
			 April 25:15 98:35 120:10 
			 May 145:20 116:00 24:10 
			 June 176:35 63:20 32:45 
			 July 0 36:40 23:50 
			 August 0 0 0 
			 September 54:30 7:35 52:30 
			 October 24:00 58:00 98:45 
			 November 25:35 49:05 — 
			 December 0 9:10 — 
		
	
	
		
			  Nimrod MR2 
			  Hours:Minutes 
			   2006  2007  2008 
			 January 13:20 23:15 0 
			 February 125:10 13:10 0 
			 March 79:10 21:25 0 
			 April 15:35 38:40 176:00 
			 May 46:05 32:30 79:00 
			 June 147:35 14:00 12:35 
			 July 12:10 11:55 245:30 
			 August 21:15 19:25 10:30 
			 September 94:05 71:00 6:10 
			 October 46:45 87:55 0 
			 November 31:20 52:30 — 
			 December 6:50 0 — 
		
	
	These figures do not reflect operational flying or airborne synthetic anti-submarine warfare training.

Military Attachés

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2008,  Official Report, columns 309-10W, on military attachés, what the reasons for the increase in the cost for the defence section in Albania between 2000-01 and 2001-02 were.

Kevan Jones: The reason for the increase in cost for the Defence Section in Albania between 2000-01 and 2001-02 was that in March 2001, the last month of financial year 2000-01, a Military Liaison Officer (MLO) was seconded to the British embassy in Albania to help assess the feasibility of establishing a defence section in that country. His pay-related costs during that time were funded from another budgetary area within the Ministry of Defence while his subsistence costs were funded from the attaché budget, as shown in the answer of 15 July 2008,  Official Report, columns 309-10W. In April 2001 an accredited defence attaché and his support staff were deployed to Albania and funded from the attaché budget, with the result that the costs of the defence section for the full financial year (2001-02) are shown in the answer of 15 July 2008,  Official Report, columns 309-10W.

Military Attachés

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2008,  Official Report, columns 309-10W, on military attachés, if he will publish a breakdown of the cost of the defence sections in  (a) Paris and  (b) Moscow for each of the last three years.

Kevan Jones: The following table provides a breakdown of the cost for the Defence sections in Paris and Moscow for the last three financial years.
	
		
			   Financial year 
			   2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			  Defence Section Paris
			 Pay-related costs including ERNIC, pension contributions and costs of living allowance 721,228 801,544 821,582 
			 Support costs including residential utilities, medical and dental costs, travel and subsistence, local school children's fees, entertainment, IT equipment, vehicle servicing repairs and personal security enhancements 423,182 352,524 361,337 
			 Total cost 1,144,410 1,154,068 1,182,919 
			 
			  Defence Section Moscow
			 Pay-related costs including ERNIC, pension contributions, and costs of living allowance 1,154,091 1,128,165 1,112,310 
			 Support costs including residential utilities, medical and dental costs, travel and subsistence, local school children's fees, entertainment, IT equipment, vehicle servicing repairs and personal security enhancements 380,539 386,993 440,737 
			 Total cost 1,534,631 1,515,158 1,553,047

Military Decorations

Christopher Fraser: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will bring forward proposals to establish a medal for members of the armed forces injured or killed in combat, analogous to the Purple Heart medal issued in the United States.

Kevan Jones: I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement the then Defence Secretary made on 10 June 2008,  Official Report, column 10WS which announced the plans for additional recognition for the families of members of the armed forces who die on operations and as a result of terrorist action. He made it clear that much detailed work would be required to work out the detail of this plan. Good progress is being made but it will be some months before we are ready to implement the plan. We hope to announce further details before the end of the year on matters such as the design and the qualifying criteria.

Military Police

Joan Humble: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many fatal incidents were investigated by the Royal Military Police Special Investigation Branch in each overseas theatre of operations since Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary's inspection of August 2006; and what the outcome of each investigation was.

Kevan Jones: When UK armed forces personnel are killed on operations, the Royal Military Police Special Investigation branch RMP(SIB) carry out an investigation in order to determine if there is any criminal liability on the part of UK personnel. The evidence they gather is passed to the military chain of command. In more serious cases, the case papers may be referred for trial by court martial.
	The RMP(SIB) have investigated 129 incidents involving UK armed forces fatalities which have occurred since 1 August 2006. Of these, 106 investigations resulted in no further action being taken against any member of the UK armed forces; 20 are ongoing; and three were referred to the Army Prosecuting Authority (APA). Of the three cases referred to the APA, one was discontinued and two resulted in trial by court martial.
	The evidence collated by the RMP(SIB) is also passed to coroners. For details of outstanding inquests and verdicts, I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement made by my right hon. Friends the Secretary of State for Defence and the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice on 30 October 2008,  Official Report, column 36WS.

Navy: Defence Equipment

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make it his policy to provide Royal Navy ships with non-lethal weapons similar to those available to the US Navy for the interdiction of pirates in the Northern Indian Ocean.

Kevan Jones: holding answer 18 November 2008
	The MOD has no current plans to fit non-lethal weapons to Royal Navy ships, although research continues to establish their potential utility. As with all emerging technologies, MOD continues to review the possibilities such innovation presents.
	UK weapon systems are consistent with international protocols, such as the Geneva convention. Their use is governed by Rules of Engagement, which ensures the application of proportionate force appropriate to the prevailing circumstances and conditions.

Nuclear Disarmament

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will assess the implications for UK nuclear weapons policy of the speech by the United Nations Secretary-General on 24 October 2008 on the importance of nuclear disarmament and security in a nuclear weapons-free world.

John Hutton: I welcome the contribution to the debate on multilateral nuclear disarmament made by Mr. Ban in his speech to the East-West Institute in New York on 24 October and, specifically, his acknowledgment of the UK's leading role. It is important that all states work together to create the security environment conducive to further multilateral disarmament, leading ultimately to a world free of nuclear weapons. This would include zero tolerance on instances of proliferation.

Piracy: Detainees

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what guidance has been issued to Royal Navy commanders on the detention of pirates on board Royal Navy vessels; and if he will make a statement.

Kevan Jones: holding answer 18 November 2008
	Commanding officers of Royal Navy ships are issued with guidance on the applicable law and principles relating to the handling and detention of those suspected of committing offences on the high seas. In addition, the handling of detainees and the humanitarian principles governing that activity are laid down in UK armed forces doctrine. More generally, the conduct of counter-piracy operations is governed as necessary by the applicable rules of engagement specific to a particular mission.

RAF Brize Norton

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much further infrastructure work is required at RAF Brize Norton before the Hercules fleet arrives; and what his estimate is of the cost of that work.

Kevan Jones: A number of infrastructure projects are being undertaken at RAF Brize Norton in preparation for the arrival of the Hercules fleet. These include the relocation of a simulator training facility; relocation of Forward Support and stores; provision of suitable freight handling capacity; expansion of the aircraft battery bay and engine bay; relocation of Hercules Force HQ. Additionally the relocation of 47 Air Despatch Squadron will be required as part of the move.
	Other infrastructure work is also being undertaken at Brize Norton which does not relate solely to the arrival of the Hercules fleet.
	The full costs of all infrastructure works related to the arrival of the Hercules fleet are not identified separately and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

RAF Brize Norton

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his latest estimate is of the timing of the Hercules fleet's removal to RAF Brize Norton; and how that removal will be phased.

Kevan Jones: The move of the C130K and C130J fleets from RAF Lyneham to RAF Brize Norton is being planned for Summer 2011. The move will be phased to ensure support to operations is maintained.

Submarines

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the maximum future endurance on station of the Astute-class submarines.

Quentin Davies: Once deployed, Astute can patrol for 90 days and should not require refuelling throughout her full service life of over 25 years.

Submarines

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what the crew strength per boat is in terms of  (a) officers and  (b) men, in respect of the current generation of attack submarines; and what the crew strength will be in respect of each Astute-class submarine;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the practicability of having two crews for each Astute-class submarine.

Quentin Davies: The manpower liability for an Astute and Trafalgar Class submarine is as follows:
	
		
			  Class  Trafalgar  Astute 
			 Officers 15 16 
			 Senior Rates 54 51 
			 Junior Rates 84 73 
			 Total 153 140 
		
	
	The Astute Class of submarine is and will continue to be manned using the watch rotational manning system currently employed for Royal Navy attack submarines. This system allows the required availability of the submarines to be met while ensuring leave and training periods for all personnel.

Tornado Aircraft

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average number of flying hours for Tornado GR4 aircrew has been in each month in 2008 to date.

Kevan Jones: Average monthly flying hours for Tornado aircrew is not recorded centrally, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

USA: Nuclear Weapons

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will assess the implications for UK nuclear weapons policy of the speech made by the United States Defence Secretary Robert Gates on 28 October 2008 in respect of United States plans to retain and replace its nuclear weapons system and warheads.

John Hutton: In his speech at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, Secretary Gates considered a number of elements of the United States nuclear weapons policy. His general assessments closely match those articulated in the 2006 White Paper "The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent" (Cm 6994).

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Christmas

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much  (a) her Department and  (b) its agencies have spent on Christmas (a) cards, (b) parties and (c) decorations in the last 12 months.

Sadiq Khan: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 13 November 2008,  Official Report, column 1322W, to the hon. Member for Hertford and Stortford (Mr. Prisk) and the answers given by my hon. Friend the Member for Gloucester (Mr. Dhanda) to the hon. Member for West Chelmsford (Mr. Burns) on 17 January 2008,  Official Report, column 1472W and the hon. Member for Guildford (Anne Milton) on 4 February 2008,  Official Report, column 839W. Information on decorations could be answered only at disproportionate cost.

Council Tax: Fraud

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 30 October 2008,  Official Report, column 1258W, on council tax, if she will place in the Library a copy of the Audit Commission guidance to local authority fraud investigators on how to follow up potential frauds and other anomalies.

John Healey: The guidance issued by the Audit Commission on the National Fraud Initiative (NFI) is limited to how to interpret and prioritise the data matches released through NFI. The Commission does not provide guidance on the investigation of the referrals. It is the responsibility of each participating body to investigate matches, where appropriate, in line with their own policies and procedures.
	As part of its continued development programme, the Commission has introduced online training tutorials for NFI 2008-09. This training material is integrated into the NFI web application and as such cannot be provided separately. Brief guidance notes to supplement the online material will be made available before the launch of the NFI 2008-09 results on 28 January 2009. A copy of those notes will then be placed in the Library.
	Copies of the Commission's guidance material issued to participating bodies for NFI 2006-07 have been placed in the Library, although this material is now out of date.

Council Tax: Pensions

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what percentage of council tax receipts in England were used to fund pension schemes that are funded by local authorities in the latest period for which figures are available.

John Healey: A proportion of total local authority revenue goes towards meeting pension liabilities and costs, but there is no specific proportion of council tax receipts which is used to meet this liability.

Departmental NDPBs

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the remit is of each non-departmental public body sponsored by her Department; and what budget each has been set for  (a) 2008-09,  (b) 2009-10 and  (c) 2010-11.

Sadiq Khan: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 21 October 2008 , Official Report, columns 227-28W. Information on NDPBs' remits may be found on their websites.

Energy Performance Certificates

Geoffrey Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether her Department has made an assessment of the suitability of reduced data SAP conventions as a model for producing energy performance certificates.

Iain Wright: The Reduced Data Standard Assessment Procedure (RDSAP) was developed from the Government's Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP), which apply to all new buildings, for the specific purposes of undertaking energy surveys of existing dwellings. The assessment on suitability was carried out during a three year development period which saw extensive research, analysis and testing by industry relating to the projects specific purposes, and the Building Research Establishment, before RDSAP was approved for use.

Essex County Council

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what discussions she has had with Essex County Council on its proposal for privatisation of its services; and if she will make a statement.

Sadiq Khan: No such discussions have taken place.

Housing Benefit

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment her Department has made of the effect on the supply of private rented accommodation of the introduction of the local housing allowances.

Iain Wright: No assessment has been made of the effect on the supply of private rented accommodation of the introduction of the local housing allowance as it is too early to do so. The local housing allowance became operational, nationwide, from 7 April 2008 and only applies to new claimants or existing claimants who have moved to a different address.
	The independent review of the private rented sector which Ministers commissioned on 23 January 2008 concluded on 23 October and the published report, headed by Julie Rugg of the university of York, contains major recommendations to improve the way in which local authorities secure accommodation in the private rented sector for low income and vulnerable people.

Housing: Derelict Land

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps she plans to take to make brownfield sites available for housing development.

Iain Wright: Building on brownfield land is essential if we are going to develop the homes that the country needs. Communities and Local Government's policies and programmes play a key part in ensuring that this happens. Through 'Planning Policy Statement (PPS) 3: Housing', for example, local planning authorities are required to plan for the long term by identifying developable sites for housing. The policy guidance maintains a continuing focus on recycling land and retains the national target that at least 60 per cent. of new homes should be built on brownfield land. Current performance against this target is 77 per cent.
	Policy guidance is also supported by priorities given to delivery bodies, such as the new Homes and Communities Agency which will be established later this year. Sustainability, including the reuse of brownfield land, will be at the heart of its work with a priority to bring about the most effective use of land and the ability to acquire derelict land for the provision of new housing.
	Also, in March this year the Government published their response to English Partnerships' recommendations for a national brownfield strategy. The strategy considers brownfield land in the widest sense including all types of development and will help site owners, developers and regulators in the process of returning brownfield land to beneficial use. Work in developing the strategy has demonstrated the importance of a joined-up approach to developing brownfield policy. CLG and DEFRA have agreed to sponsor a new national body—the National Brownfield Forum—to secure better co-ordination at national level. The forum brings together key Whitehall Departments, agencies and industry stakeholders and promotes a more cohesive and inclusive approach to brownfield policy development and encourages knowledge sharing and best practice.

Housing: Low Incomes

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 3 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 124-5W, on housing: low incomes, and with reference to the December 2004 letter to local authority directors of housing from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's Divisional Head of Housing Data and Statistics, which property attributes and fields were requested by the Valuation Office Agency; and which were  (a) top priority and  (b) mandatory.

John Healey: The information requested is provided in the following list. No information was imported directly into the Valuation Office Agency's property attribute database.
	 Mandatory
	Address
	Data provider's property reference number
	Reference number of the data provider
	Report date
	Date that the data relates to
	 Top priority
	Report generator
	Valuation
	Valuation cloned or not
	Date of valuation
	Type of dwelling or other form of accommodation
	Form of structure within which the dwelling is located
	Lifts
	Year built
	Floorspace
	Number of private living rooms
	Number of bedrooms
	Number of bathrooms for exclusive use of the tenants

Housing: Valuation

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 22 July 2008,  Official Report, column 1400W, on housing: valuation, how many localities have been given a name in addition to a unique reference number.

John Healey: None.

Information Commissioner

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will implement the recommendations made in respect of her Department by the Information Commissioner in Practice Recommendation, reference FPR0189170.

Sadiq Khan: Communities and Local Government will implement the recommendations made by the Information Commissioner in his Practice Recommendation, and is already making significant improvements in its performance.

Local Authorities: Business

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which local authorities have introduced business improvement districts.

John Healey: The following list shows the local authorities which have introduced business improvement districts:
	 Eastern region
	Bedford borough council
	Great Yarmouth borough council
	Ipswich borough council
	 East midlands
	Derby city council
	North Kesteven district council
	 London
	Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames
	Islington council
	LB of Havering
	LB of Camden
	LB of Southwark
	LB of Lambeth
	LB of Ealing
	LB of Redbridge
	Waltham Forest
	Westminster city council
	 South-east
	Arun district council
	Brighton and Hove council
	Croydon council
	Fareham borough council
	Winchester city council
	 South-west
	Bristol city council
	Plymouth city council
	Swindon borough council
	Taunton Deane borough council
	West Dorset district council
	 North-east
	Hartlepool borough council
	 North-west
	Allerdale borough council
	Blackburn with Darwen borough council
	Blackpool borough council
	Bolton metropolitan borough council
	Halton borough council
	Hyndburn borough council
	Liverpool city council
	Oldham borough council
	Vale Royal borough council
	 West midlands
	Birmingham city council
	Cannock Chase DC
	Coventry city council
	Shrewsbury and Atcham borough council
	Rugby borough council
	Sandwell metropolitan borough council
	West Sussex county council
	 Yorkshire and Humberside
	Hull city council
	Ryedale borough council

Local Authorities: Debt Collection

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what powers local authorities have to hire bailiffs to collect unpaid  (a) council tax,  (b) council housing rent and  (c) parking fines.

John Healey: Local authority enforcement powers, including the levying of distress, for the collection of unpaid council tax are contained in schedule 4 to the Local Government Finance Act 1992 and part VI of the Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992 (SI 1992/613).
	Under part 6 of the Traffic Management Act 2004 and the Civil Enforcement of Parking Contraventions (England) General Regulations 2007 (SI 2007/3483) local authorities in England that have civil parking enforcement powers have the right to use certificated bailiffs to enforce unpaid penalty charge notices.
	There are no powers for local authorities to use privately-employed certified bailiffs in respect of arrears of rent owed by their residential tenants. Action against tenants in rent arrears must take the form of court proceedings, in which case, court bailiffs may be used for enforcement of the order.

Local Authority Business Growth Incentive Scheme

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the policy basis was on which the NUTS 2 territorial groupings were used for the distribution of the new round of funding from the Local Authority Business Growth Incentive Scheme.

John Healey: The proposed basis for the distribution of rewards in the new round of the Local Authority Business Growth Incentives Scheme is currently subject to consultation. The consultation closes on 20 November 2008. Local authorities have been invited to include, in their responses to the consultation, the sub-regional groupings they consider to be appropriate. No decision has yet been made about the groupings to be used for distributing reward in 2009-10.

Local Government: Bank Services

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what estimate she has made of the average change in rate of return on local authority investments in 2009-10 resulting from new investment strategies prompted by the collapse of Icelandic banks;
	(2)  what estimate she has made of the aggregate loss incurred by local authorities as a result of a reduction in interest earned upon unreturned deposits held by Icelandic banks.

John Healey: We have made no such estimates. The rate of return on investments by local authorities is a matter for individual councils, taking into account the Department's investment guidance.

Local Government: Bank Services

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the length of time it will take for local authorities to recover assets deposited in Icelandic banks.

John Healey: The Government continue to work with the Icelandic authorities to ensure a fair deal for all UK depositors. The administrators of Heritable Bank Plc and Kaupthing Singer and Friedlander Limited bank, Ernst and Young have agreed to provide an estimate on the level of recoverable funds so that local authorities may take this estimate into account in planning their budgets for financial year 2009-10.

Local Government: Bank Services

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether local authorities may invest in government-guaranteed bank bonds.

John Healey: A local authority may invest in government-guaranteed bank bonds provided that this has been agreed by full council as part of its annual investment strategy.

Local Government: Bank Services

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Oxford, East (Mr. Smith) of 4 November 2008,  Official Report, column 343W, on local authorities: bank services, if she will place in the Library the advice to local authorities from the Chartered Institute of Public Finance.

John Healey: I will arrange for a copy of the advice to local authorities from the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy to be placed in the Library.

Local Government: Bank Services

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment her Department's predecessor made of the amount of unrecovered deposits by local authorities in the former Bank of Credit and Commerce International, expressed as a proportion of all local authority deposits in 1991-92.

John Healey: According to the liquidators' website at:
	http://www.bcci.info/
	admitted creditors of BCCI will have received 86.5 per cent. of their claims by December 2008.

Local Government: Bank Services

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the level of exposure of each local authority to Icelandic banks is.

John Healey: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam (Mr. Burstow) on 6 November, 2008  Official Report, column 724W.

Local Government: Elections

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the likely effect on voter turnout of the decision to hold the forthcoming English local elections and elections to the European Parliament on the same date.

John Healey: When taking the decisions, approved by Parliament, to hold the 2009 English local elections and European Parliament elections on the same date, we had regard to the evidence which showed that the turnout for the combined local and European elections in 2004, was significantly higher than the turnout for the previous equivalent elections which were not combined. For the European elections in 2004, the voter turnout was 38.5 per cent. compared to 24 per cent. in the previous European elections in 1999. For the 2004 district council elections, turnout was 41 per cent. compared to 30 per cent. for the previous equivalent district elections held in 2000.

Local Government: Elections

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the likely effect on public expenditure of the decision to hold the forthcoming English local elections and elections to the European Parliament on the same date; and what plans have been made on the use of any savings accruing from that decision.

John Healey: While it is difficult to provide an accurate estimate of such savings, the indications are that savings in the region of £10 million could result from holding the English local elections and elections to the European Parliament on the same day. To the extent that the costs of the European elections are reduced, this will be reflected in a lower call on the Consolidated Fund, while any reduction in the costs of local elections will reduce the call on councils' own resources.

Local Government: Reorganisation

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps her Department takes to consult representatives of the historic counties when taking decisions on unitary authorities.

John Healey: The Association of British Counties, which promotes the historic counties, have made representations to us during our consideration of councils' unitary proposals and the current implementation of the nine new unitary councils approved by Parliament.

Non-Domestic Rates: Ports

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what her assessment is of the impact of retrospective changes to business rates on the port of Liverpool on employment and economic activity in Merseyside; and if she will make a statement.

John Healey: There is a concern for businesses in the current economic climate receiving large backdated rated liabilities that have to be paid immediately, as the position for a number of port occupiers has demonstrated. We are looking urgently at options for mitigating the financial impact on businesses facing immediate payment of such significant backdated liabilities.

Non-Domestic Rates: Valuation

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the Answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 30 October 2008,  Official Report, column 1284W, on non-domestic rates: valuation, how many sub-locations there are in each billing authority area in England.

John Healey: The information requested cannot be provided without disproportionate cost.

Racial Harassment

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many complaints of racial abuse relating to staff for which her Department is responsible have been  (a) investigated and  (b) upheld in the last 12 months.

Sadiq Khan: There been no formal complaints of racial abuse relating to staff in the Department in the last 12 months.

Robert Tym Partnership

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when she expects the Robert Tym Partnership to present its report on council tax and empty properties to her Department.

John Healey: I expect this in due course.

Severn Barrage

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether she has held discussions with the insurance industry on the effects on levels of home insurance of the potential flooding arising from the construction of a Severn Barrage.

Mike O'Brien: I have been asked to reply.
	Assessment of impacts on flood risk is an integral part of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) commissioned by the Severn Tidal Power Feasibility Study. Should this Study proceed following internal review, further work will be undertaken to better understand the impacts on flood risk, land drainage and ground water levels arising from the construction of the short listed tidal power options for the Severn Estuary.

Small Businesses: Tax Allowances

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of  (a) the number of firms that have taken up small business rate relief and  (b) the reduction in business rate revenue attributable to the relief in the latest period for which figures are available.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) on 11 December 2007,  Official Report, column 559W, and on 3 November 2008,  Official Report, column 132W.

Small Businesses: Tax Allowances

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent estimate she has made of the take-up rate of small business rate relief.

John Healey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) on 13 December 2007,  Official Report, column 901W.

Small Businesses: Tax Allowances

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 30 October 2008,  Official Report, column 1284W, on small business rates: tax allowances, if she will place in the Library a copy of the business rates information letter dated 19th September 2008.

John Healey: All business rates information letters are available on the Department's website at the following internet address:
	http://www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/busrats1.htm
	The letter in question can be found at the following address:
	http://www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/busrats/bri52008.pdf.

Small Businesses: Tax Allowances

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what procedure small firms will have to follow to claim the proposed exemption from supplementary business rates.

John Healey: The Government are consulting on technical issues before finalising detailed arrangements.

Travelling People

Eleanor Laing: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many cases there have been of Green Belt land being released in order to build publicly-owned Gypsy and Traveller sites in the last 10 years.

Iain Wright: We do not hold information on the release through the development plan process of Green Belt land for Gypsy and Traveller sites.

Valuation Office: Databases

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Bromley and Chislehurst (Robert Neill) of 6 November 2008,  Official Report, column 684W, on Valuation Office: databases, what the 2008-09 budget for the database alignment exercise is; and whether the budget includes payments to Ordnance Survey.

John Healey: The database alignment exercise is being undertaken by Ordnance Survey. No payments are being made to Ordinance Survey for the alignment work.

HEALTH

Alcoholic Drinks: Learning Disability

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people with a learning disability received NHS treatment for  (a) alcohol and  (b) drug abuse in the last five years.

Dawn Primarolo: This information is not collected centrally.

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of children and young people who have parents with alcohol use problems.

Dawn Primarolo: The Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England, published in March 2004, estimated 1.3 million children were living with at least one parent who misused alcohol. A copy of the strategy has already been placed in the Library.

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the level of primary care trust spending on services to reduce alcohol harm.

Dawn Primarolo: Data on national health service spend on alcohol interventions are not collected, however, in 2005 the Alcohol Needs Assessment Research Project reported that the NHS in England, in 2003-04, spent an estimated £217 million on alcohol interventions. An extra £15 million in additional funding has been included within primary care trusts (PCTs) general allocations from 2007-08 to improve alcohol interventions.
	Additionally, the National Audit Office have carried out an audit of NHS spend on alcohol interventions. Their report, "Reducing Alcohol Harm: health services in England for alcohol misuse", was published in November 2008 and found, that where primary care trust expenditure on alcohol services was known, an average of £600,000 was spent on commissioning alcohol services in 2006-07. A copy of the report has been placed in the Library.

Care Homes: Injuries

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what guidance his Department provides on manual handling in order to minimise the risk of bruising to care home residents or persons in other care settings;
	(2)  what research his Department has commissioned on and what assessment it has made of the reasons for bruising of residents of care homes and persons in other care settings;
	(3)  what standards his Department has set for the  (a) monitoring and  (b) reporting of bruising caused to care home residents.

Phil Hope: All health and care providers must ensure compliance with the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992.
	The Care Homes Regulations 2001 and the Domiciliary Care Agencies Regulations 2002 require care providers to make suitable arrangements to provide a safe system for moving and handling service users.
	The National Minimum Standards for Care Homes for Younger Adults, Older People and Domiciliary Care Agencies require care managers to ensure safe working practices, including moving and handling and use of techniques for moving people and objects that avoid injury to services users or staff.
	The Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI), as the regulator, will require registered care providers to adhere to the relevant regulations on lifting and handling and to ensure that staff are trained and updated in appropriate techniques and on how to use equipment by an accredited trainer, and for equipment to be maintained at intervals recommended by the manufacturer.
	The Department has not commissioned research into bruising of residents in care settings and does not specifically require bruising to be monitored or reported. However, Regulation 37 of the Care Homes Regulations requires care homes to keep records of and notify CSCI without delay of the death of, serious injury to and any event in the care home which adversely affects the well-being or safety of any service user. CSCI inspectors assess and view these records.
	CSCI issues guidance logs to care providers on the CSCI Professionals website at:
	http://www.csci.org.uk/professional/care_providers/all_services/guidance/guidance_log_care_homes_for_o.aspx.
	These include guidance as to procedures CSCI would advise or expect to see in terms of manual handling in a care home.
	Guidance on lifting and handling is also available on the Social Care Institute for Excellence website at:
	http://www.scie-peoplemanagement.org.uk/resource/docPreview.asp?docID=18.
	Through the National Carers Strategy, launched in June 2008, the "Caring with Confidence" programme has been established as a training programme for carers, with the first training delivered in August 2008 and distance-training modules available from January 2009. It is being run by a consortium, led by the Expert Patients Programme, and also includes the three main carers organisations—Carers UK, Crossroads and the Princess Royal Trust for Carers—and Partners in Policymaking. There is £4.4 million a year to fund the training programme, which will cover a range of issues, including lifting and handling.

Care Homes: Inspections

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures relating to infection control form part of the Commission for Social Care Inspection's care home inspection programme; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: Providers of registered care services are responsible of the health and welfare of people using their services. The Care Homes Regulations 2001 require care homes to make suitable arrangements to prevent infection, toxic conditions and the spread of infection, and to maintain standards of hygiene. The national minimum standards (NMS) for care homes reinforce these requirements. The NMS relating to infection control are key standards; the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) will always refer to them during a key inspection.
	CSCI requires providers to report on the performance of their service annually. This includes specific questions about infection control. If the previous performance of the home gives rise to concerns, or CSCI has received information which raises particular issues, then it will focus on these areas during an inspection.

Continuing Care: Direct Payments

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people received continuing care payments in  (a) England,  (b) each strategic health authority and  (c) each NHS trust in each of the last five years.

Phil Hope: Data on the total number of people in receipt of continuing care in each year are not collected centrally.

Departmental Co-ordination

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department has received from HM Treasury in the last six months.

Ben Bradshaw: The Treasury issues a wide range of policy and financial guidance to Departments. This includes guidance on the publication of 2008 Autumn Performance Reports, and aspects of accounting including the implementation of International Financial Reporting Standards.

Departmental Land

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for each of the sites owned by his Department and registered on the Register of Surplus Public Sector Land; what construction projects are planned for each site; and when he expects each site to be returned to use.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department is actively pursuing the disposal of all the sites in its control that are currently included on the Register of Surplus Public Sector Land. It will be for the purchasers of these sites to determine the use to which they are put and when they are returned to use.

Departmental Public Relations

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East (James Duddridge) of 6 October 2008,  Official Report, columns 406-7W, on departmental public relations, which firms were employed; and what topic of work each undertook.

Ben Bradshaw: The public relations (PR) agencies which were employed through the Central Office of Information (COI) framework agreement and the topics of work were as follows:
	 2005-06
	The Forster Company - Alcohol Harm Reduction Stakeholder Engagement Programme
	Trimedia Communications - El 11 (health insurance card) PR programme
	Munro and Forster Communications - NHS Institute PR
	 2006-07
	Band and Brown Communications - PR for National Breastfeeding Awareness Week
	Trimedia Communications - Independent Reconfiguration Panel PR
	Pier 55 Ltd - NHS Business Services Authority advertorials
	 2007-08
	Band and Brown Communications - PR for National Breastfeeding Awareness Week

Disabled People: North East

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many young people in  (a) Gateshead and  (b) Sunderland are registered as physically disabled.

Phil Hope: The information requested is not held centrally.

Elderly: Mentally Incapacitated

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) care homes and  (b) beds for the elderly mentally infirm there were in (i) England and (ii) each local authority in each of the last five years.

Phil Hope: I am informed by the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) that it does not register care homes according to the age of residents. CSCI inspectors will decide at the time of an inspection whether to inspect a home against the national minimum standards (NMS) for care homes for older people or younger adults. This decision is based on the age profile of the residents of the home at the time of inspection.
	CSCI does not register care homes according to the client groups, such as those suffering from dementia, which they may accommodate. CSCI will register a home as being able to care for at least one service user from a particular client group. These client groups do not include the "elderly mentally infirm". CSCI registers homes as being able to care for people with dementia, people with learning disability and people with a mental disorder—not including a learning disability or dementia.
	Information on the numbers of care homes with at least one place registered to care for older people with dementia and/or mental disorder which were active in each local authority area and England on 31 March at the end of each financial year shown, that had been inspected at some point prior against the NMS for older people (though not necessarily during the year in question), has been placed in the Library.

Health Services: Crosby

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what expenditure his Department has incurred on the establishment of new health service facilities in Crosby constituency since 1997.

Ben Bradshaw: This information is not collected centrally. However, the Sefton Primary Care Trust is a partner in the Liverpool and Sefton Local Improvement Finance Trust scheme which has delivered six primary care centres for patients. This includes the Litherland Town Hall Health Centre which was redeveloped at a cost of £5.1 million and opened to patients in September 2005.

Health Services: Crosby

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what capital expenditure his Department has incurred on health service projects in Crosby constituency since 1997.

Ben Bradshaw: The information is not available in the format requested. However, the following table shows the total expenditure on purchased additions of fixed assets by national health service body. The Department does not hold information relating to the reasons for this expenditure, or for the geographical areas in which it is spent.
	
		
			  £000 
			   2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			 Sefton Primary Care Trust — — — — 886 743 
			 Aintree Hospitals NHS Trust 8,994 14,751 5,329 4,645 917 — 
			 Royal Liverpool Children's Hospitals NHS Trust 3,898 3,885 2,852 3,790 3,781 5,848 
			 Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust 4,740 20,302 18,702 13,279 6,790 6,498 
			 Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Trust 2,605 6,584 14,417 20,406 8,173 8,815 
			 Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery NHS Trust 975 1,537 3,390 1,458 1,439 3,989 
			 Total purchased fixed assets 21,212 47,059 44,690 43,578 21,986 25,893 
			  Notes: 1. Data are not available for foundation trusts, so the information for Aintree Hospital NHS Trust only covers the period to 31 July 2006. 2. Sefton Primary Care Trust came into existence in 2006-07, so data prior to this is not available. 3. Levels of capital expenditure vary from year to year depending on local investment decisions.  Source: Audited summarisation schedules

Health Services: Crosby

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many finished consultant episodes there were in Crosby constituency in 1997; and how many there have been in 2008 to date.

Ben Bradshaw: The information is not available in the format requested. However, the following table shows finished consultant episodes (FCEs) at the Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sefton primary care trust (PCT), and the former Southport and Formby and South Sefton PCTs.
	
		
			PCT of responsibility 
			   Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust as a provider  Sefton PCT  Southport and Formby PCT  South Sefton PCT 
			 2006-07 100,008 95,548 — — 
			 2005-06 97,945 — 28,118 56,691 
			 2004-05 91,900 — 25,360 53,478 
			 2003-04 86,747 — 26,363 52,619 
			 2002-03 78,117 — 26,613 47,269 
			 2001-02 74,542 — — — 
			 2000-01 78,248 — — — 
			 1999-2000 74,910 — — — 
			 1998-99 73,596 — — — 
			 1997-98 80,535 — — — 
			  Notes: 1. The Southport and Formby PCT and the South Sefton PCTs merged in 2006-07 to create the Sefton PCT—these two PCTs can be added together to compare with 2006-07. 2. As a result of the merger of the Southport and Formby PCT and the South Sefton PCT, figures are provided for these PCTs from 2002-03 to 2005-06. A complex merger occurred prior to 2002-03 and it is not possible to trace which trusts should be included in order to get an accurate comparable figure. 3. Ungrossed data—figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data. 4. A FCE is defined as a period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FCEs are counted against the year in which the FCE finishes. The figures do not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the year. 5. It is also important that the PCT and trust figures are not added together, as the same FCEs may be counted under both organisations. This is because the trust data look at activity provided by the trust, whereas the PCT activity looks at activity commissioned by the PCT (which may then be provided at Aintree University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust). 6. Data Quality—HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and PCTs in England. Data are also received from a number of independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data via HES processes. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain.  Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), the Information Centre for health and social care.

Health Services: Crosby

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients in Crosby constituency waited more than six months for treatment in 1997; and how many have done so in 2008 to date.

Ben Bradshaw: The information is not available at constituency level.
	At quarter 4 1996-97, there were 2,946 patients waiting more than six months for treatment in the former health authority area, which includes the Crosby constituency.
	During 2008, no patients within the Sefton primary care trust area have waited more than six months for treatment.

Hospitals: Admissions

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department has made of the average length of stay in hospital of a patient in days in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The median length of stay is two days. This figure relates to 2006-07 activity in NHS hospitals in England, and activity performed in the independent sector in England which was commissioned by the NHS in England. This is the most recent year for which information is available.

Hospitals: East of England

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been spent by the East of England strategic health authority on improving services in hospitals to compensate for the closure of other hospitals in the region in the latest period for which figures are available.

Ben Bradshaw: The information requested is not held centrally. The hon. Member may therefore wish to raise this directly with NHS East of England.

Hospitals: Waiting Lists

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the cost of additional activity to meet the 18 week target for operation waiting times in each of the last four years;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the likely changes in NHS  (a) activity levels and  (b) costs from (i) achieving and (ii) maintaining the 18 week target for operation waiting times in the next two years;
	(3)  if he will estimate the cost to the NHS of reducing the maximum operation waiting time to  (a) 17 weeks,  (b) 16 weeks,  (c) 14 weeks,  (d) 12 weeks and  (e) eight weeks.

Ben Bradshaw: The 2004 comprehensive spending review provided for an extra £1,000 million and £1,900 million in 2006-07 and 2007-08 respectively for extra outpatient and inpatient activity needed to cover demand growth, existing waiting time initiatives and progress towards the 18 week waiting time target.
	Achievement of the 18 week target has required the national health service to increase elective activity at a rate to meet both underlying demand and also clear the backlog of waiters. Achievement of the 18 week target will reduce the required rate of growth to just underlying activity. The Department has not made an estimate of the savings of meeting the 18 week target.
	There are no current plans centrally to estimate the cost to the NHS of reducing waiting times below the existing public service agreement 18 week target agreed with HM Treasury. However, primary care trusts may set and fund local stretch targets which include further reductions in maximum waiting times in some areas.

Incontinence: Medical Equipment

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will meet representatives of the User Group Coalition to discuss the revised proposals on Part IX of the Drug Tariff; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: In conducting the review of arrangements under part IX of the Drug Tariff for the provision of stoma and urology appliances—and related services—in primary care—departmental officials have sought the views of a wide range of interested parties, including patient representatives. The User Coalition Group has met with officials—as have individual members of the group. Unfortunately, due to diary commitments I am unable to meet the group. However, I have asked departmental officials to contact the chair of the group to organise a meeting.

Incontinence: Medical Equipment

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the likelihood of including contractors for the dispensing of intermittent catheters in the proposed new arrangements for prescription fees under Part IX of the Drug Tariff; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: The review of the arrangements under Part IX of the Drug Tariff for the provision of stoma and urology appliances—and related services—in primary care had considered all appliances listed in Part IXA (catheter related), Part IXB and Part IXC. Intermittent catheters are included in Part IXC and consequently have been part of this review.
	In addition, the review is considering reimbursement for items and remuneration for services to both dispensing appliance contractors (DACs) and pharmacy contractors. If such DACs dispense intermittent catheters then they would be included in any new arrangements for the provision of stoma and urology appliances and related services in primary care under Part IX of the Drug Tariff.

Medical Treatments

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which treatments have been appraised by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence; which have been  (a) fully recommended,  (b) partly recommended and  (c) not recommended for use in the NHS; and in respect of each treatment what the (i) indication for which it was appraised and (ii) estimated annual eligible patient population is.

Dawn Primarolo: A summary of technology appraisal guidance published by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence is shown in the following table. Information on the estimated eligible annual population could be collated only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  NICE technology appraisals published as at October 2008 
			  No.  Title of guidance  Date of issue  Recommendation 
			 1 Wisdom teeth March 2000 Partly recommended 
			 2 Hip replacement April 2000 Partly recommended 
			 3 Taxanes for ovarian cancer May 2000 Partly recommended 
			 4 Coronary artery stents May 2000 Partly recommended 
			 5 Liquid-based cytology—cervical screening June 2000 Not recommended 
			 6 Taxanes for breast cancer June 2000 Partly recommended 
			 7 Proton pump inhibitors July 2000 Partly recommended 
			 8 Hearing aids July 2000 Partly recommended 
			 9 Rosiglitazone for type 2 diabetes August 2000 Partly recommended 
			 10 Inhaler systems for under 5s August 2000 Recommended 
			 11 Implantable cardioverter defibrillators September 2000 Partly recommended 
			 12 Glycoprotein llb/llla inhibitors September 2000 Recommended 
			 13 Methylphenidate for Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder October 2000 Recommended 
			 14 Ribavirin and interferon alpha for hepatitis C October 2000 Partly recommended 
			 15 Zanamivir for influenza November 2000 Partly recommended 
			 16 Autologous cartilage transplantation in knee joints December 2000 Not recommended 
			 17 Laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer January 2001 Not recommended 
			 18 Laparoscopic surgery for inguinal hernia December 2000 Partly recommended 
			 19 Donepezil, Rivastigmine and Galantamine for Alzheimer's disease January 2001 Partly recommended 
			 20 Riluzole for motor neurone disease January 2001 Recommended 
			 21 Pioglitazone for type 2 diabetes March 2001 Partly recommended 
			 22 Orlistat for obesity March 2001 Partly recommended 
			 23 Temozolomide for brain cancer April 2001 Partly recommended 
			 24 Difficult to heal surgical wounds April 2001 Recommended 
			 25 Gemcitabine for pancreatic cancer May 2001 Partly recommended 
			 26 Non-small cell lung cancer June 2001 Recommended 
			 27 Cox II for osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis July 2001 Partly recommended 
			 28 Topetecan for advanced ovarian cancer August 2001 Partly recommended 
			 29 Fludarabine for B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemia September 2001 Recommended 
			 30 Taxanes for breast cancer—review September 2001 Partly recommended 
			 31 Sibutramine for obesity in adults October 2001 Recommended 
			 32 Beta interferon and glatiramer January 2002 Not recommended 
			 33 Colorectal cancer March 2002 Partly recommended 
			 34 Tratuzumab breast cancer March 2002 Partly recommended 
			 35 Enteracept juvenile arthritis March 2002 Partly recommended 
			 36 Enteracept and infliximab rheumatoid arthritis March 2002 Partly recommended 
			 37 Rituximab lymphoma March 2002 Partly recommended 
			 38 Inhalers 5-15 March 2002 Recommended 
			 39 Zyban and nicotine replacement therapy March 2002 Recommended 
			 40 Infliximab for Crohn's disease May 2002 Partly recommended 
			 41 Routine anti-D rhesus negative women May 2002 Recommended 
			 42 Human growth hormone for children May 2002 Recommended 
			 43 Atypical antipsychotics June 2002 Recommended 
			 44 Metal on metal June 2002 Partly recommended 
			 45 Pegylated liposomal doxorubicin hydrochloride (Caelyx) for ovarian cancer July 2002 Partly recommended 
			 46 Surgery for morbid obesity July 2002 Partly recommended 
			 47 Glycoproteins—review September 2002 Recommended 
			 48 Home vs hospital haemodialysis September 2002 Partly recommended 
			 49 Ultrasonic locating devices for pacing central venous lines September 2002 Recommended 
			 50 Imatinib for chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) October 2002 Recommended 
			 51 Computerised cognitive behavioural therapy October 2002 Not recommended 
			 52 Thrombolysis October 2002 Recommended 
			 53 Long acting insulin analogues (glargine) December 2002 Partly recommended 
			 54 Vinorelbine for breast cancer December 2002 Partly recommended 
			 55 Paclitaxel for ovarian cancer January 2003 Recommended 
			 56 Tension free vaginal tape February 2003 Recommended 
			 57 Subcutaneous insulin infusion (insulin pumps) February 2003 Partly recommended 
			 58 Zanamivir, oseltamivir and amantidine for the treatment of flu February 2003 Partly recommended 
			 59 Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) April 2003 Partly recommended 
			 60 Patient education models diabetes April 2003 Recommended 
			 61 Capecitabine and tegafur with uracil for metastatic colorectal cancer May 2003 Recommended 
			 62 Capecitabine for locally advance breast cancer May 2003 Recommended 
			 63 Glitazones for type 2 diabetes—review August 2003 Partly recommended 
			 64 Human growth hormone in adults August 2003 Partly recommended 
			 65 Rituximab for aggressive non Hodgkin's lymphoma September 2003 Partly recommended 
			 66 Olanzapine and valporate semisodium for bipolar 1 disorder September 2003 Recommended 
			 67 Oseltamivir and amantidine for prophylaxis of flu September 2003 Partly recommended 
			 68 Photodynamic therapy (PDT) for macular degeneration September 2003 Partly recommended 
			 69 Use of liquid-based cytology for cervical screening October 2003 Recommended 
			 70 Use of imatanib for chronic myeloid leukaemia October 2003 Partly recommended 
			 71 Use of coronary artery stents October 2003 Partly recommended 
			 72 Rheumatoid arthritis—anakinra November 2003 Not recommended 
			 73 Myocardial perfusion scintigraphy for the diagnosis and management of angina and myocardial infarction November 2003 Partly recommended 
			 74 Pre-hospital initiation of fluid replacement therapy in trauma January 2004 Partly recommended 
			 75 Hepatitis C—pegylated interferons, ribavarin and alfa interferon January 2004 Partly recommended 
			 76 Newer drugs for epilepsy in adults March 2004 Partly recommended 
			 77 Newer hypnotic drugs for insomnia April 2004 Partly recommended 
			 78 Fluid-filled thermal balloon and microwave endometrial ablation techniques for heavy menstrual bleeding April 2004 Partly recommended 
			 79 Newer drugs for epilepsy in children April 2004 Partly recommended 
			 80 Acute coronary syndromes—clopidogrel July 2004 Recommended 
			 81 Atopic dermatitis (eczema)—topical steroids August 2004 Partly recommended 
			 82 Atopic dermatitis (eczema)—pimecrolimus and tacrolimus August 2004 Partly recommended 
			 83 Hernia—laparoscopic surgery—review September 2004 Partly recommended 
			 84 Sepsis (severe)—drotrecogin September 2004 Recommended 
			 85 Renal transplantation—immunosuppressive regimens (adults) September 2004 Partly recommended 
			 86 Gastro-intestinal stromal tumours (GIST)—imatinib October 2004 Partly recommended 
			 87 Secondary osteoporosis January 2005 Partly recommended 
			 88 Dual-chamber pacemakers for the treatment of symptomatic bradycardia February 2005 Partly recommended 
			 89 Cartilage injury—autologous chondrocyte implantation (ACI)—review May 2005 Not recommended 
			 90 Vascular disease—clopidogrel and dipyridamole May 2005 Partly recommended 
			 91 Ovarian cancer (advanced)—paclitaxel, pegylated liposomal doxorubicin hydrochloride and topotecan—review May 2005 Partly recommended 
			 92 Tooth decay—Healozone July 2005 Not recommended 
			 93 Colorectal cancer (advanced)—irinotecan, oxaliplatin and raltitrexed—review August 2005 Partly recommended 
			 94 Cardiovascular disease—statins January 2006 Partly recommended 
			 95 Arrhythmia—implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs)—review January 2006 Partly recommended 
			 96 Hepatitis B (chronic)—adefovir dipivoxil and pegylated interferon alpha-2a February 2006 Partly recommended 
			 97 Depression and anxiety—computerised cognitive behavioural therapy (CCBT) February 2006 Partly recommended 
			 98 Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)—methylphenidate, atomoxetine and dexamfetamine—review March 2006 Partly recommended 
			 99 Immunosuppressive therapy for renal transplantation in children and adolescents April 2006 Partly recommended 
			 100 Capecitabine and oxaliplatin in the adjuvant treatment of stage III (Dukes' C) colon cancer April 2006 Recommended 
			 101 Docetaxel for hormone refractory prostate cancer June 2006 Recommended 
			 102 Parent-training/education programmes in the management of children with conduct disorders July 2006 Recommended 
			 103 Etanercept and efalizumab for psoriasis July 2006 Partly recommended 
			 104 Etanercept and infliximab for psoriatic arthritis July 2006 Partly recommended 
			 105 Laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer August 2006 Recommended 
			 106 Peginterferon alfa and ribavirin for the treatment of mild chronic hepatitis C August 2006 Recommended 
			 107 Trastuzumab for the adjuvant treatment of early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer August 2006 Partly recommended 
			 108 Breast cancer (early)—paclitaxel September 2006 Not recommended 
			 109 Breast cancer (early)—docetaxel September 2006 Recommended 
			 110 Follicular lymphoma—rituximab September 2006 Recommended 
			 111 Alzheimer's—donepezil, galantamine, rivastigmine (review) and memantine November 2006 Partly recommended 
			 112 Breast cancer (early)—hormonal treatments November 2006 Recommended 
			 113 Diabetes (types 1 and 2)—inhaled insulin December 2006 Partly recommended 
			 114 Drug misuse—methadone and buprenorphine January 2007 Recommended 
			 115 Drug misuse—naltrexone January 2007 Partly recommended 
			 116 Breast cancer—gemcitabine January 2007 Partly recommended 
			 117 Hyperparathyroidism—cinacalcet January 2007 Partly recommended 
			 118 Colorectal cancer (metastatic)—bevacizumab and cetuximab January 2007 Not recommended 
			 119 Leukaemia (lymphocytic)—fludarabine February 2007 Not recommended 
			 120 Heart failure—cardiac resynchronisation May 2007 Partly recommended 
			 121 Glioma (newly diagnosed and high grade)—carmustine implants and temozolomide June 2007 Partly recommended 
			 122 Ischaemic stroke (acute)—alteplase June 2007 Recommended 
			 123 Smoking cessation—varenicline July 2007 Recommended 
			 124 Non-small cell lung cancer—pemetrexed August 2007 Not recommended 
			 125 Psoriatic arthritis (moderate to severe)—adalimumab August 2007 Partly recommended 
			 126 Rheumatoid arthritis (refractory)—rituximab August 2007 Partly recommended 
			 127 Multiple sclerosis—natalizumab August 2007 Recommended 
			 128 Haemorrhoid—stapled haemorroidopexy September 2007 Recommended 
			 129 Velcade—multiple myeloma October 2007 Recommended 
			 130 Rheumatoid arthritis—adalimumab, etanercept and infliximab October 2007 Partly recommended 
			 131 Asthma (in children)—corticosteroids November 2007 Partly recommended 
			 132 Hypercholesterolemia—ezetimibe November 2007 Partly recommended 
			 133 Asthma (uncontrolled)—omalizumab November 2007 Partly recommended 
			 134 Psoriasis—infliximab January 2008 Partly recommended 
			 135 Mesothelioma—pemetrexed disodium January 2008 Partly recommended 
			 136 Structural neuroimaging in first-episode psychosis February 2008 Not recommended 
			 137 Lymphoma (follicular non-Hodgkin's)—rituximab February 2008 Recommended 
			 138 Asthma (in adults)—corticosteroids March 2008 Partly recommended 
			 139 Sleep apnoea—continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) March 2008 Partly recommended 
			 140 Colitis (ulcerative)—infliximab April 2008 Not recommended 
			 141 Rheumatoid arthritis (refractory)—abatacept April 2008 Not recommended 
			 142 Anaemia (cancer-treatment induced)—erythropoietin (alpha and beta) and darbepoetin May 2008 Partly recommended 
			 143 Ankylosing spondylitis—adalimumab, etanercept and infliximab May 2008 Partly recommended 
			 144 Obesity—rimonabant June 2008 Partly recommended 
			 145 Head and neck cancer—cetuximab June 2008 Partly recommended 
			 146 Psoriasis—adalimumab June 2008 Partly recommended 
			 147 Breast cancer (advanced and metastatic)—bevacizumab June 2008 Terminated 
			 148 Lung cancer (non-small-cell)—bevacizumab June 2008 Terminated 
			 149 Glioma (recurrent)—carmustine implants June 2008 Terminated 
			 150 Colorectal cancer (metastatic)—cetuximab June 2008 Terminated 
			 151 Diabetes—insulin pump therapy July 2008 Partly recommended 
			 152 Coronary artery disease—drug-eluting stents July 2008 Partly recommended 
			 153 Hepatitis B—entecavir August 2008 Recommended 
			 154 Hepatitis B—telbivudine August 2008 Not recommended 
			 155 Macular degeneration (age-related)—ranibizumab and pegaptanib August 2008 Partly recommended 
			 156 Pregnancy (rhesus negative women)—routine anti-D (review) August 2008 Partly recommended 
			 157 Venous thromboembolism—dabigatran September 2008 Recommended 
			 158 Influenza (prophylaxis)—amantadine, oseltamivir and zanamivir September 2008 Partly recommended 
			 159 Pain (chronic neuropathic or ischaemic)—spinal cord stimulation October 2008 Partly recommended 
			 160 Osteoporosis—primary prevention October 2008 Partly recommended 
			 161 Osteoporosis—secondary prevention including strontium ranelate October 2008 Partly recommended

Medical Treatments

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what basis the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) decided on a patient population not normally exceeding 7,000 as one of the criteria for consideration of a treatment under the supplementary advice on appraising end-of-life medicines announced by NICE on 4 November 2008; and what consideration was given to applying the advice to patient populations of  (a) more than and  (b) fewer than 7,000.

Dawn Primarolo: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is currently carrying out a public consultation on supplementary advice to its appraisal committees when they are asked to appraise life-extending medicines licensed for terminal illnesses affecting small numbers of patients.
	The supplementary advice has been developed independently by NICE and states that
	"The population for which the medicine is indicated and licensed should not normally exceed 7,000, with the intention of including medicines for rarer cancers and other uncommon conditions, and small groups within larger populations. The reason for selecting a small population maximum figure is that it may sometimes be the case that the costs involved in developing medicines for small groups of patients need to be reflected in a higher price, at least for the first indication."
	NICE will consider the comments it receives in response to the consultation.

Medical Treatments

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which interventions  (a) have been and  (b) are being assessed by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) through its (i) Single Technology Appraisal and (ii) Multiple Technology Appraisal processes; for which indications each treatment has been assessed; what estimate has been made of the annual eligible patient population for each treatment; and in respect of each treatment on which date (A) the treatment received its product licence, (B) the treatment was referred to NICE, (C) NICE began its appraisal and (D) NICE plans to complete its appraisal.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 4 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 370-76W, showing the information requested on the timings of single technology appraisals published and in development by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE). Information on appraisals conducted through NICE's multiple technology appraisal programme and information on the estimated eligible annual population for all appraisals could be collated only at disproportionate cost.

Mental Health Services: Children

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the cost of ensuring that no child under the age of 16 years is placed in an adult mental health in-patient ward.

Ann Keen: No estimate has been made.
	The national health service has made significant progress on this issue and the latest available figures, for July to September 2008, show only five bed days for under-16s on adult psychiatric wards. This is the lowest figure since data collection started in 2005.

Mental Health Services: Standards

Stephen Hesford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has undertaken to establish the long-term recovery levels of patients receiving private mental health care for the purposes of benchmarking.

Phil Hope: The Department has not undertaken any research.

Methadone

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were prescribed methadone in  (a) the Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust area and  (b) Stroud constituency in each of the last 10 years.

Dawn Primarolo: The Department does not hold information on the number of patients treated with a particular drug. However we are able to provide two related sources of data covering the Gloucestershire and Stroud areas. These are the number of methadone prescriptions and the number of people receiving specialist prescribing treatment for drug misuse.
	The number of items prescribed and dispensed for methadone is in the following table. This information covers the last 60 months and is based on the primary care trust (PCT) that most closely represents the area requested.
	 Note:
	Methadone can be used to treat more than one condition—it is licensed for use in opioid dependence, as an analgesic and as a cough suppressant.
	
		
			  Number of prescription items (not individuals receiving prescriptions) of methadone 
			  Financial year  Gloucestershire PCT( 1) 
			 2007-08 5,995 
			 2006-07 5,559 
			 2005-06 3,990 
			 2004-05 3,046 
			 (1) Due to changes in PCT configuration Gloucestershire PCT comprised the following PCTs, pre 2006 changes: Cheltenham and Tewkesbury PCT Cotswold and Vale PCT West Gloucestershire PCT 
		
	
	The National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse's (NTA) National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS) collects data on people in drug treatment in England.
	NDTMS records numbers of people receiving specialist prescribing for drug treatment rather than the type of drug which is prescribed. Most of those in treatment receive oral methadone, but buprenorphine or other substitute opioids may also be prescribed.
	The NDTMS only records data based on local authority boundaries, and only since 2004-05. The NDTMS does not break down data specifically for Stroud.
	Data for the number of people receiving prescribing treatment in the Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust area, for each of the years since 2004-05 are given in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of individual receiving prescribing treating (including methadone) for drug misuse 
			   Number 
			 2004-05 865 
			 2005-06 1,314 
			 2006-07 1,358 
			 2007-08 1,467

Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what budget was allocated within the East of England strategic health authority to reduce MRSA in hospitals in the latest period for which figures are available.

Ann Keen: The information requested is not held centrally. Funding to deliver reduced methicillin-resistant  Staphylococcus aureus in hospitals is made available to the national health service mostly through general primary care trust (PCT) allocations. Individual PCT allocations are not broken down into funding or budgets for specific initiatives. It is for the national health service to decide locally how best to meet the national priorities set out in the "NHS Operating Framework" (a copy of which is available in the Library), including how much funding to make available. The hon. Member may therefore wish to raise this directly with NHS East of England.

NHS: Consultants

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  with reference to the analysis of consultants' NHS and private incomes funded by his Department what permission was sought from consultants to use this data; in what ways the data were anonymised; and how much the study cost;
	(2)  with reference to the analysis of consultants' NHS and private incomes funded by his Department, what the  (a) total income,  (b) private income and  (c) NHS income was of NHS consultants in the period analysed, broken down by (i) place of work and (ii) place of NHS employment;
	(3)  if he will place in the Library a copy of HM Revenue and Customs correspondence files relating to securing access to the tax return database to complete the analysis of consultants NHS and private incomes undertaken by his Department;
	(4)  in which regions those consultants funded by his Department and included in its analysis of consultant NHS and private income worked; and what other studies involving interrogation of consultants' and future consultants' tax returns he has commissioned in the last 11 years.

Ann Keen: The following table gives national health service consultants' average total income, average private income and average NHS income for 2003-04.
	The information is presented by pre-2006 strategic health authority (SHA).
	Information by place of work and place of NHS employment is not available.
	
		
			  Consultant earnings 2003-04 
			  SHA  Average total income  (£)  Average NHS income  (£)  Average private income  (£)  Number of c onsultants in sample 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside 131,659 75,630 56,030 1,297 
			 Essex 131,226 75,005 56,221 552 
			 County Durham and Tees Valley 124,735 73,772 50,963 614 
			 Shropshire and Staffordshire 119,291 71,384 47,907 610 
			 North West London 118,843 73,021 45,822 1,028 
			 Birmingham and the Black Country 116,901 72,290 44,611 1,308 
			 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire 118,096 74,880 43,216 545 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire 119,013 75,464 43,549 793 
			 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear 109,788 70,302 39,486 912 
			 Dorset and Somerset 114,396 75,543 38,853 505 
			 North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire 110,446 75,929 34,517 637 
			 Thames Valley 106,074 72,987 33,087 953 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire 106,641 74,195 32,446 964 
			 South East London 106,266 74,400 31,866 995 
			 Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland 110,989 78,331 32,658 617 
			 South West Peninsula 102,429 73,827 28,602 757 
			 North East London 111,569 81,749 29,820 711 
			 West Midlands South 105,397 77,413 27,984 680 
			 North Central London 106,003 77,863 28,140 1,044 
			 Surrey and Sussex 103,711 77,426 26,285 1,172 
			 Kent and Medway 106,769 80,011 26,758 583 
			 West Yorkshire 102,264 77,290 24,974 1,156 
			 South West London 98,580 74,665 23,915 704 
			 Trent 104,591 81,995 22,596 1,082 
			 Hampshire and Isle of Wight 102,154 81,050 21,104 818 
			 Greater Manchester 102,399 81,801 20,598 1,468 
			 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire 102,254 81,694 20,560 1,093 
			 South Yorkshire 101,578 81,400 20,178 809 
			  Notes: 1. Source: The Table is taken from the article: "Analysis of consultants' NHS and private income in England 2003-04"—Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine 2008. 2. The income variables used were from employment income (assumed to be NHS income) and self-employment income (assumed to be income from private medical practice). 
		
	
	The table also shows the regions in which these consultants worked.
	In summer 2006, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) statisticians created an anonymised statistical dataset for research into the staff market forces factor (MFF) used in NHS resource allocation. The dataset was created by linking selected variables supplied by NHS Information Centre for health and social care from the 2003 NHS Medical and Dental Workforce Census with three income variables derived from HMRC records: total employment income, total self-employment income and the sum of these two variables. Any variables used to link the data were removed prior to access by the academic researcher contracted by Department. This deliberately partial data set contained only the information required by the researcher to carry out the statistical (regression) analysis used in the review of the MFF.
	The researcher had access to only this anonymised, statistical dataset. The statistical analyses were undertaken on HMRC premises. Having signed appropriate confidentiality undertakings, the researcher was allowed supervised access to the dataset in an isolated environment with no connection to either HMRC networks and administrative data systems or to external sites via internet or e-mail. HMRC reviewed all statistical output compiled by the researcher and released only aggregate non-disclosive summaries. No outputs based on single or small number of records were released. The smallest sample count in the published report was 30. This is well within the guidelines for dissemination of statistics in National Statistics protocols. The researcher was not allowed to return to the dataset once the agreed analysis had been completed.
	As will be clear from the table, it was impossible to link records in the statistical dataset with any data relating to an identifiable individual, so no permission was sought from NHS consultants for this research to take place.
	The total cost of the contract for research into the staff MFF was £75,000. The analysis of private sector earnings of NHS consultants was a relatively small, but influential part of the review of the MFF. The final research report on the review of the staff MFF will be made available on the Department of Health website alongside the PCT revenue allocations, to be announced at the time of the Operating Framework for the NHS later this year.
	The correspondence files relating to securing access to the tax return data base do not exist, since no one was given access to a data base of tax returns. The process that was followed to give access to an anonymised data set is as described.
	In the last 11 years, HMRC has conducted surveys into consultants' earnings on behalf of the Department of Health for tax years 1998-99 to 2004-05 inclusive, using data from HMRC records. No outputs from this work have been provided to non-HM Revenue and Customs personnel in either pseudo-anonymised or non-anonymised form. HMRC released only anonymised outputs to the Department of Health or to the NHS Information Centre for health and Social care.
	In addition, at the request of the Department for 2003-04 only, HMRC created an anonymised statistical dataset relating to consultants' earnings. It contained only the pre-arranged data items for a sample of 24,407 cases that were necessary to enable researchers acting on behalf of the Department of Health to undertake statistical analysis. The researchers were allowed supervised access to the dataset on HMRC premises. HMRC reviewed the outputs from the statistical analysis to ensure that only non-disclosive summary and aggregate statistics were compiled and used in the report.

NHS: Improving Access to Medicines

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to paragraph 5.12 of the report to his Department on improving access to NHS medicines by Professor Mike Richards CBE, how his Department plans to encourage primary care trusts to work together to make proactive commissioning decisions.

Ben Bradshaw: On 4 November, the Secretary of State accepted this recommendation and the national health service chief executive wrote to all strategic health authority (SHA) chief executives to ask them to review, by April 2009, the way in which primary care trusts in their area collaborate to support effective decision-making on new drugs.
	All SHAs are now taking forward this piece of work in their local areas.

NHS: Improving Access to Medicines

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to implement Recommendation 3 of improving access to medicines for NHS patients.

Ben Bradshaw: We will publish in the new year a set of core principles to inform the way in which primary care trusts make decisions about funding new drugs, followed by detailed good practice guidance for the national health service.

NHS: Improving Access to Medicines

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what timetable he has set for implementing Recommendation 6 of improving access to medicines for NHS patients; whether he plans to publish the results of the work; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The Secretary of State has asked Professor Mike Richards to take forward this piece of work, with a view to making the results public at the end of 2009.

NHS: Improving Access to Medicines

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his Statement of 4 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 131-33, on NHS patients: access to medicines, which drugs he will refer back to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence for re-appraisal.

Dawn Primarolo: We have no plans to refer any drugs or treatments back to the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) for reappraisal. NICE already has a system in place for periodically reviewing those appraisals it has published.

NHS: Improving Access to Medicines

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the Statement of 4 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 131-33, on NHS patients: access to medicines, what steps he expects the NHS trust to take with regard to the funding of any treatment needed as a result of complications in circumstances where it is not possible to identify whether complications have resulted from a patient's private or NHS treatment.

Ben Bradshaw: The draft revised guidance published by the Department on 4 November is clear that, where patients pay for additional, private treatment, the national health service should not be expected to meet any predictable costs resulting from the private element of care. Copies of the guidance have already been placed in the Library.
	However, in circumstances where it is not possible to identify whether complications have resulted from a patient's private or NHS treatment, or in an emergency, patients should, of course, be entitled to NHS care.

NHS: Manpower

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many full-time equivalent staff work at  (a) the NHS Blood and Transplant Authority,  (b) NHS Professionals,  (c) the Commission for Social Care Inspection,  (d) the General Social Care Council,  (e) the Healthcare Commission,  (f) the Appointments Commission,  (g) the Mental Health Act Commission,  (h) the Social Care Institute for Excellence,  (i) the Hepatitis Advisory Group,  (j) the AIDS Expert Advisory Group and  (k) the Healthcare Regulatory Council.

Ben Bradshaw: The information requested is as follows:
	
		
			   Number 
			  Arm's Length Bodies  
			 NHS Blood and Transplant (1)5,579.86 
			 NHS Professionals (1)272.32 
			 Commission for Social Care Inspection (1)1,541.20 
			 General Social Care Council (1)200.60 
			 Healthcare Commission (1)867.00 
			 Appointments Commission (1)44.75 
			 Mental Health Act Commission (1)41.00 
			 Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence (1)16.00 
			   
			  Charities  
			 Social Care Institute for Excellence (1)68.00 
			 Advisory Non-Departmental Public Bodies — 
			 Neither of these bodies employ staff. — 
			 Hepatitis Advisory Group — 
			 AIDS Expert Advisory Group — 
			 (1) Whole-time equivalent.

NHS: Private Sector

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to paragraph 11 of his Department's equality impact assessment on NHS patients who wish to pay for additional private care, which private treatments currently unavailable will be made available on the NHS.

Dawn Primarolo: The future use of specific interventions within the national health service will depend on a variety of factors, including recommendations made by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence.

NHS: Private Sector

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to paragraph 9.6 of his Department's consultation document on Guidance on NHS patients who wish to pay for additional private care, what his Department's definition is of unreasonable profit.

Ben Bradshaw: The draft revised guidance the Department published on 4 November sets out the clear principles that should be applied to every situation where a national health service patient chooses to purchase additional care privately.
	One of these principles is that the NHS should not be seen to be profiting unreasonably from patients in these circumstances.
	The Department does not consider it sensible to try to define this at a national level and the Government do not set prices for private healthcare. Instead, the principle set out in the guidance sets a clear expectation to all NHS organisations that any charges they make in their capacity as providers of private care must be reasonable and justifiable. It is then for NHS organisations to apply this principle locally, in line with their particular local circumstances.
	A copy of the guidance has already been placed in the Library.

NHS: Private Sector

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his policy is on whether patients will have to pay for the full cost of the NHS element if they wish to proceed with the private element in cases where it is impossible to separate a private element of a patient's treatment from an NHS-provided element.

Ben Bradshaw: The draft revised guidance, published by the Department of Health on 4 November, sets out clearly the principles that should apply in circumstances where patients wish to purchase additional, private care. It says that:
	"As overriding rules, it is essential that:
	the NHS should never subsidise private care with public money, which would breach core NHS principles; and
	patients should never be charged for their NHS care, which would contravene the founding principles and legislation of the NHS."
	The guidance goes on to say that,
	"in order to ensure that there is no risk of the NHS subsidising private care:
	It should always be clear whether an individual procedure or treatment is privately funded or NHS funded.
	Private and NHS care should be kept as clearly separate as possible.
	Private care should be carried out at a different time and place. A different place would include the facilities of a private health care provider, or part of an NHS organisation which has been designated for private care, including amenity beds.
	This guidance applies to additional private health care that patients receive over and above their NHS care. It does not permit a "pick and mix" approach where patients can pay to upgrade any individual elements of their NHS care."
	The guidance has already been placed in the Library.

NHS: Private Sector

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the Statement of 4 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 131-33, on NHS patients: access to medicines, how many patients he expects will take up the right to purchase separate private care in each of the next three years.

Ben Bradshaw: The measures announced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State on 4 November will improve access to drugs for national health service patients, reducing the number of patients likely to purchase additional care privately. The Department does not have sufficient data to estimate patient numbers reliably.
	However, the Secretary of State accepted Professor Mike Richards's recommendation that the Department should commission a national audit of demand for unfunded drugs. The Secretary of State has asked Professor Richards to lead this work.

Nurses: Maternity Services

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many registered neonatal nurses he estimates will be required in neonatal intensive care units in  (a) Wandsworth and  (b) London in (i) 2009, (ii) 2010 and (iii) 2011.

Ann Keen: It is for local national health service organisations to analyse their local work force needs and develop plans, in liaison with commissioners, providers and service users, to deliver high quality, safe services and take action to secure the appropriate staff and skills to deliver these services.

Nurses: Maternity Services

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many registered neonatal nurses there are in  (a) Wandsworth and  (b) London.

Ann Keen: Neonatal nurses are not currently identifiable within the NHS census data collected by the Information Centre for health and social care. The number of qualified paediatric nurses in the London strategic health authority area, Kingston Hospital NHS Trust, and St. George's Healthcare NHS Trust can be found in the following table.
	
		
			  NHS hospital and community health services: Qualified paediatric nurses in the London strategic health authority area and each specified organisation as at 30 September 2007 
			  Headcount 
			 London strategic health authority area 4,164 
			  O f which:  
			 Kingston Hospital NHS Trust 70 
			 St. George's Healthcare NHS Trust 146 
			  Note: Data quality: Work force statistics are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) in England. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data. Processing methods and procedures are continually being updated to improve data quality. Where this happens any impact on figures already published will be assessed but unless this is significant at national level they will not be changed. Where there is impact only at detailed or local level this will be footnoted in relevant analyses.  Source: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care Non-Medical Workforce Census.

Obesity

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information he holds on the number of children who have been estimated to be obese or seriously overweight in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available; and how many teenagers have been diagnosed with diabetes in each such year.

Dawn Primarolo: Information on the percentage of children aged two to 15 who are overweight or obese in each of the last 10 years is available from the "Health Survey for England 2006 Latest trends: Children trend tables 2006" published on 31 January 2008. The information can be found on table 4. This publication has already been placed in the Library.
	Further information on the percentage of children who are overweight or obese is also available for the year 2006-07 for those in school year reception (aged four to five) and year 6 (aged 10 to 11) from the National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP). This information is available in the "National Child Measurement Programme: 2006/07 school year, headline results" published on 21 February 2008. The prevalence of obese children can be found in table 1 (page 3). This publication has already been placed in the Library.
	Information on the number of teenagers diagnosed with diabetes in each of the last 10 years is not available.

Patient Choice Schemes

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which primary care trusts use NHS Direct as their Choose and Book appointments line.

Ben Bradshaw: All primary care trusts have the facility to use the Choose and Book appointments line run by NHS Direct on behalf of the national health service.
	While the vast majority of primary care trusts use this service for all of their calls, five primary care trusts have taken the operational decision to only use it for out of hours services between the period 07.00 to 09.00 and 17.00 to 22.00 hours Monday to Friday and 07.00 to 22.00 on a Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays.
	Where primary care trusts take the decision to organise their own service outside of the nationally provided arrangement, the service is funded locally by the primary care trust.

Patient Choice Schemes

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average cost per call to the NHS Direct National Choose and Book appointments line was in each of the last three years; and how much income the service generated in each year.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department does not collect information on the cost incurred by individual patients calling the national 0845 608 8888 number. The actual cost incurred by patients will vary depending on whether a patient calls from a landline or mobile and what cost tariff they are on with the phone service provider. The National Choose and Book Appointment Line do not generate any income from patient calls made to the service.
	Patients can also book their appointment, free of charge, either via the internet or in their general practitioner (GP) surgery at the time of their referral by the GP.
	The cost to NHS Direct of providing the National Choose and Book Appointment Line service is paid for from national health service financial resources.

Patient Choice Schemes

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health in what proportion of appointments booked via the NHS Direct National Choose and Book appointments line a hard copy confirmation of the booking was posted to the patient within two days in each of the last 36 months.

Ben Bradshaw: The NHS Direct choose and book appointments line are not responsible for posting a hard copy confirmation of a patient's booking. Details of a patient's appointment are conveyed over the telephone when patients choose to book their appointment in this way, with clinical details about a patient's appointment sent by the provider of their choice who in most cases will send the patient a hard copy confirmation of their booking.

Prescriptions

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of prescription items were dispensed to patients as repeat prescriptions in  (a) Vale of York constituency and  (b) England in the last three years.

Phil Hope: The Department does not hold the information regarding the percentage of prescriptions which are issued as repeat prescriptions.

Quality Adjusted Life Year

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the progress on the research commissioned by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) from the National Institute for Health Research to consider public opinion on NICE's use of the Quality Adjusted Life Year as a basis for its recommendations.

Dawn Primarolo: We have made no such assessment. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is an independent organisation and is responsible for considering the impact of research on its methods and processes.
	NICE commissioned the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) to conduct two pieces of research into the use of the Quality Adjusted Life Year (QALY). The 'What is the value to society of a QALY?' report was published in July 2008 and 'The relative societal value of health gains to different beneficiaries' report was published in August 2008.

Sight Impaired

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many registered blind people there are, broken down by  (a) region and  (b) constituency; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: Data on the number of registered blind and partially sighted people are not collected centrally by constituency but are available for councils with adult social services responsibilities and Government office regions.
	Information collected 31 March 2008, shows that 153,000 people were on the register of blind people, a slight increase of around 500 (0.3 per cent.) from March 2006 although there were 10,200 new registrations to the register of blind people, a fall of 5 per cent. compared to 2006.
	The following table shows the number of blind and partially sighted people registered with councils with adult social services responsibilities in England.
	
		
			  Number of blind and partially sighted people registered with councils with adult social services responsibilities in England as at 31 March 2008 
			  Rounded numbers 
			   Total number of people (all ages) registered as: 
			   Blind  Partially sighted 
			  England 152,980 156,285 
			
			  North East 6,785 8,310 
			 Durham 1,475 1,805 
			 Northumberland 720 840 
			 Darlington 250 320 
			 Hartlepool 220 190 
			 Middlesbrough 290 475 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 250 460 
			 Stockton-on-Tees 365 530 
			 Gateshead 505 710 
			 Newcastle-upon-Tyne 810 840 
			 North Tyneside 635 675 
			 South Tyneside 450 480 
			 Sunderland 805 990 
			
			  North West 22,550 24,675 
			 Cheshire 1,995 2,000 
			 Cumbria 1,350 1,555 
			 Lancashire 3,540 4,540 
			 Blackburn with Darwen 530 835 
			 Blackpool 565 870 
			 Halton 255 360 
			 Warrington 435 580 
			 Bolton 750 1,020 
			 Bury 865 750 
			 Knowsley 455 560 
			 Liverpool 1,195 1,120 
			 Manchester 1,890 1,770 
			 Oldham 870 775 
			 Rochdale 1,525 835 
			 Salford 1,025 1,065 
			 Sefton 1,025 975 
			 St Helens 335 565 
			 Stockport 620 885 
			 Tameside 665 580 
			 Trafford 825 725 
			 Wigan 675 1,005 
			 Wirral 1,155 1,320 
			
			  Yorkshire  and  the Humber 17,150 17,935 
			 North Yorkshire 1,780 1,905 
			 East Riding 1,055 1,125 
			 Kingston-upon-Hull 735 705 
			 NE Lincolnshire 425 355 
			 North Lincolnshire 600 385 
			 York 430 555 
			 Barnsley 1,810 1,220 
			 Bradford 1,670 1,725 
			 Calderdale 480 465 
			 Doncaster 760 1,225 
			 Kirklees 785 670 
			 Leeds 2,780 2,460 
			 Rotherham 860 1,360 
			 Sheffield 1,730 1,890 
			 Wakefield 1,250 1,895 
			
			  East Midlands 13,120 14,700 
			 Derbyshire 3,040 3,070 
			 Leicestershire 1,520 1,980 
			 Lincolnshire 1,990 2,450 
			 Northamptonshire 1,705 1,285 
			 Nottinghamshire 1,830 2,820 
			 Derby 995 590 
			 Leicester 1,035 1,135 
			 Nottingham 915 1265 
			 Rutland 85 100 
			
			  West Midlands 15,975 16,215 
			 Shropshire 695 650 
			 Staffordshire 2,085 1,930 
			 Warwickshire 1,335 1,600 
			 Worcestershire 1,125 1,205 
			 Herefordshire 780 1,385 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 750 640 
			 Telford and Wrekin 305 390 
			 Birmingham 4,690 3,965 
			 Coventry 665 805 
			 Dudley 800 810 
			 Sandwell 850 805 
			 Solihull 510 420 
			 Walsall 700 825 
			 Wolverhampton 690 785 
			
			  South West 15,145 14,855 
			 Cornwall 1,700 1,760 
			 Devon 2,075 2,080 
			 Dorset 1,260 1,365 
			 Gloucestershire 1,530 1,885 
			 Isles of Scilly — 10 
			 Somerset 1,560 1,275 
			 Wiltshire 1,455 1,285 
			 Bath and NE Somerset 540 535 
			 Bournemouth 845 670 
			 Bristol 930 1,025 
			 North Somerset 670 635 
			 Plymouth 640 570 
			 Poole 645 635 
			 South Gloucestershire 505 385 
			 Swindon 305 285 
			 Torbay 480 460 
			
			  Eastern 15,110 14,740 
			 Bedfordshire 665 680 
			 Cambridgeshire 1,595 1,105 
			 Essex 3,215 3,485 
			 Hertfordshire 3,100 3,055 
			 Norfolk 2,600 2,330 
			 Suffolk 2,210 2,185 
			 Luton 555 430 
			 Peterborough 500 480 
			 Southend 440 670 
			 Thurrock 225 320 
			
			  London 21,650 17,665 
			 Camden 665 640 
			 Greenwich 465 600 
			 Hackney 590 450 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 520 330 
			 Islington 680 600 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 585 355 
			 Lambeth 840 160 
			 Lewisham 660 450 
			 Southwark 750 520 
			 Tower Hamlets 395 430 
			 Wandsworth 785 630 
			 Westminster 810 540 
			 City of London 10 20 
			 Barking and Dagenham 345 395 
			 Barnet 950 905 
			 Bexley 390 450 
			 Brent 1,380 935 
			 Bromley 955 1,020 
			 Croydon 955 745 
			 Ealing 970 650 
			 Enfield 565 500 
			 Haringey 915 685 
			 Harrow 630 530 
			 Havering 365 510 
			 Hillingdon 645 730 
			 Hounslow 750 710 
			 Kingston-upon-Thames 345 260 
			 Merton 590 515 
			 Newham 965 610 
			 Redbridge 915 830 
			 Richmond-upon-Thames 370 270 
			 Sutton 595 535 
			 Waltham Forest 305 160 
			
			  South East 25,495 27,190 
			 Buckinghamshire 980 1,105 
			 East Sussex 2,365 2,280 
			 Hampshire 3,340 4,730 
			 Kent 4,955 6,410 
			 Oxfordshire 2,105 1,820 
			 Surrey 2,455 1,840 
			 West Sussex 4,000 3,945 
			 Bracknell Forest 215 180 
			 Brighton and Hove 900 645 
			 Isle of Wight 365 470 
			 Medway Towns 405 545 
			 Milton Keynes 555 445 
			 Portsmouth 505 430 
			 Reading 480 490 
			 Slough 285 205 
			 Southampton 605 690 
			 West Berkshire 325 370 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 370 320 
			 Wokingham 285 270 
			  Notes:  1. '—' = 6 or less (or less than 50 for national and regional totals) 2. Figures may not add up because of rounding.  Source: National figures are actual figures from 150 SSDA902 forms.

Sugar

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the health effects of a significant reduction in the sugar content of soft drinks.

Dawn Primarolo: Current United Kingdom dietary recommendations for maximal levels of sugar intake are based on a review of the evidence carried out by the Committee on Medical Aspects of Food Policy (COMA) in 1991, and are in line with a more recent review by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2003. The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition, which now advises the Government on nutrition issues, are about to embark on a review of the evidence on carbohydrates and health, including sugars and sources of sugar. As a result, dietary advice and any recommendations on specific foods will be amended accordingly.

Sugar

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what meetings officials of  (a) his Department and  (b) the Food Standards Agency have had with representatives of food and soft drink manufacturers on the reduction of added sugar levels in food products in the last 12 months; what good practice case studies his Department has identified as suitable for promotion to manufacturers; and what steps he plans to take further to encourage manufacturers to reduce the calorific content of food products;
	(2)  what steps the Food Standards Agency is taking to encourage major retailers to reduce the sugar content of their own brand food and beverage products;
	(3)  what targets the Food Standards Agency has set for the substitution of extrinsic sugars by low calorie sweeteners in  (a) food and  (b) beverages; what progress has been made towards those targets; what assessment he has made of the public health benefits which will arise as a result of future progress towards those targets; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has lead responsibility for taking forward the work with industry to reduce consumption of, and levels of, sugar in food, including drinks with added sugar, as laid down in the cross-Government obesity strategy "Healthy Weight Healthy Lives".
	As part of this initiative, the FSA is meeting with food industry representatives, including the major retailers and their suppliers, to pursue reductions in sugar to soft drinks. It has met with representatives of the soft drinks industry on four occasions over the past 12 months—one soft drinks industry meeting and individual meetings with Britvic (twice) and Coca Cola Bottlers (Ulster). In these discussions, examples of sugar reductions achieved have been reported by Britvic, Coca Cola and GlaxoSmithKline in some of their branded ranges. Departmental officials have not met with industry to discuss sugar reduction specifically.
	The FSA is developing aspirational targets for reductions in added sugar and saturated fat in a range of key contributing food products as part of its Saturated Fat and Energy Intake Programme.
	Sugar reductions in soft drinks are being encouraged by the FSA while maintaining taste, quality and consumer acceptability. Specific targets for the substitution of sugar with sweeteners have not been set.

Surgery

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department has made of the average  (a) length of hospital stay of an invasive surgery patient and  (b) cost per day for an invasive surgery patient to stay in hospital in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: It is not possible to provide an estimate of the average cost per day, as the data collected as part of the annual NHS reference cost collection include all costs associated with treatment and service provision, and not just the cost of the stay in hospital.
	It is not possible to provide an estimate of the average length of stay, as specific data relating to the average length of stay for invasive surgery patients are not collected centrally.

Wines: Hazardous Substances

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what checks are in place to ensure that wine sold in the UK does not contain harmful levels of metals such as lead, zinc and copper; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Food Authorities and the Food Standards Agency wine standards inspectors as part of their routine enforcement work carry out checks including sampling on wine sold within the United Kingdom to ensure that the wine complies with relevant wine-sector and food safety legislation.

BUSINESS, ENTERPRISE AND REGULATORY REFORM

BT: Public Telephones

James Gray: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what recent representations he has received on BT's public service obligation on the provision of public pay phones.

Ian Pearson: BERR officials have received correspondence from a number of local authorities on BT's national rationalisation programme. Under Office of Communications (Ofcom) guidelines, unitary authority consent is required before BT can remove a payphone where there is not another payphone located within 400 m and BT has therefore been consulting with local authorities across England, Wales and Scotland on proposals to remove low-usage payphones in their area. Ofcom is aware of BT's plans and BT are adhering to its guidelines for payphone removals. Further details on Ofcom's guidelines is available from their website at:
	http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/uso/uso_statement/uso_plain_english/

Departmental Conditions of Employment

Theresa May: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what percentage of employees in his Department  (a) are on a flexible working contract,  (b) are on a job share employment contract and  (c) work from home for more than four hours per week.

Patrick McFadden: The Department considers flexible working opportunities are a key part of a healthy and productive working environment.
	Flexible working options available include a range of working patterns that can be requested by all staff and can help individuals gain a work-life balance. These include home-working, flexi-time, part-time working, job share, compressed hours, and annualised or term-time working.
	Guidance, available to all staff and managers, contains best practice hints and tips for flexible workers and managers, specific guidance on skills and how to manage work and performance.
	Currently 56 per cent of staff in the Department report that they work flexibly.

Departmental Internet

Oliver Heald: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the cost of maintaining the Departmental website for the 2007-08 financial year is; and what forecast has been made of the cost of maintaining websites within his responsibility for the 2008-09 financial year.

Patrick McFadden: The main cost elements of the upkeep of the Department's website are:
	The Rhythmyx content management system (CMS). The CMS is used by staff across the Department and cost £1,029,474.83 in 2007-08. The forecast cost for 2008-9 is £1,180,000.
	Provision and maintenance of the site's search engine facility by a third-party supplier, Open Objects. In 2007-08 this cost £15,784.2. The forecast cost for 2008-9 is £25,000.

Postal Services: Liverpool

Louise Ellman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what his assessment is of the impact of Royal Mail's proposal to close the sorting office at Copperas Hill, Liverpool on employment in the city; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: Decisions relating to operational matters, which include decisions on the restructuring of Royal Mail's sorting office operations, are the direct responsibility of the company's management.
	Given that volumes of mail are falling due to the upsurge in the use of digital media for communications, it is important that Royal Mail structures its operations as efficiently as possible so that it can compete in a liberalised market, while continuing to maintain the universal postal service at affordable prices.

Regulation: Departmental Coordination

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what guidance his Department has given to other Government Departments, agencies and non-departmental public bodies on their obligations under the Code of Practice on Guidance on Regulation.

Ian Pearson: Guidance on how to comply with the obligations under the code is contained in a Guide to the Code of Practice on Guidance, published alongside the code of practice. The guide is available at:
	http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file46951.pdf
	The Anderson Review of Guidance was announced in the Enterprise White Paper in April 2008 and will report at the end of November. The review will make a series of further recommendations on how to improve guidance for business.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Bereavement Benefits: Publications

Terry Rooney: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reasons leaflet D49 on bereavement benefits has been withdrawn; and what plans he has to publish a replacement for it.

Jonathan R Shaw: holding answer 13 November 2008
	 Leaflet D49 (titled "What to do after a death in England and Wales") was published in April 2006. A review of the leaflet earlier in 2008 raised a risk that some of the details in the leaflet were now inaccurate, and could mislead citizens if the title remained in circulation.
	More recent versions of the information within D49 continue to be available on several government websites, and can be printed locally by the individual or on their behalf, during the brief period while a replacement to D49 is prepared.
	The replacement to D49 is currently being agreed by senior policy officials from four different Government Departments responsible for registrars, coroners, probate and benefits. It is expected that the replacement leaflet DWP1027 will be published in December 2008.
	To ensure that citizens are aware of their entitlement to bereavement benefits, an interim factsheet has also been produced to fill the gap until the replacement leaflet is published. The factsheet is available online, and has been made available to registrars and coroners offices across Great Britain for them to issue as appropriate.

Child Support Agency: Complaints

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints about the Child Support Agency were received by the Independent Case Examiner in each of the last three years; and how many cases accepted by the Examiner have taken  (a) more than six months,  (b) more than nine months and  (c) 12 months or more to reach a conclusion.

Kitty Ussher: The Independent Case Examiner's office does not hold all the information in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the table.
	
		
			   Number of complaints received about the Child Support Agency  Average case clearance in weeks for cases accepted 
			 2005-06 3,187 22.46 
			 2006-07 3,927 18.86 
			 2007-08 3,860 21.21

Children: Maintenance

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his estimate is of the number of children who would be lifted from both  (a) absolute and  (b) relative poverty should all non-resident parents pay child maintenance; and if he will make a statement.

Kitty Ussher: holding answer 4 November 2008
	The receipt of child maintenance payments currently helps to lift around 100,000 children out of relative poverty.
	We estimate that, under the current system of child maintenance, if all non-resident parents with a positive maintenance liability paid their child maintenance this would lift around 100,000 more children out of relative poverty.
	Estimates of the impact on absolute poverty if all non-resident parents paid child maintenance are not available.
	 Notes:
	1. Number of children lifted out of poverty is defined as the number of children in households lifted above 60 per cent. of equivalised median household income before housing costs after the receipt of child maintenance payments.
	2. Estimates are based on analysis of 2006-07 Family Resources Survey and are rounded to the nearest 100,000.

Council Tax

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people received council tax benefit in  (a) North Yorkshire and  (b) the Vale of York constituency in each year since 1997.

Kitty Ussher: Information is not available at parliamentary constituency level. Information is available for North Yorkshire for benefit units comprising single people and couples.
	The following table provides the number of benefit units receiving council tax benefit in each year since 1997.
	
		
			  North Yorkshire 
			   Number 
			 1997 35,330 
			 1998 32,940 
			 1999 32,900 
			 2000 30,890 
			 2001 30,980 
			 2002 30,070 
			 2003 30,260 
			 2004 33,280 
			 2005 33,830 
			 2006 35,160 
			 2007 35,440 
			  Notes: 1. Data refer to benefit units, which may be a single person or a couple. 2. The figures have been rounded to the nearest 10. 3. Figures for any non-responding authorities have been estimated. 4. Council tax benefit totals exclude any second adult rebate cases.  Source: Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management Information System Quarterly 100 per cent. case load stock-count taken in May 1997 to May 2007. 
		
	
	Jobseeker's allowance (income-based) are published in the report "Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take-Up in 2006-07". Estimates of the number of people eligible for the additional amount for carers in pension credit are not available.
	The number of people in receipt of pension credit and carer's allowance over the last five years is shown in table 1 and all pension credit expenditure on recipients entitled to the extra amount for carers is shown in table 2.
	
		
			  Table 1: Pension credit and carer's allowance 
			Pension credit 
			  As at February each year  Carer's allowance  Total pension credit recipients  Recipients with the additional amount for caring 
			 2004 656,310 2,282,300 95,200 
			 2005 721,610 2,654,670 153,810 
			 2006 777,910 2,709,220 187,830 
			 2007 823,820 2,730,940 215,050 
			 2008 872,080 2,723,140 237,700 
			  Notes: 1. Carer's allowance figures include those people who are entitled to carer's allowance but who do not receive a payment as a result of the overlapping benefit rules. 2. Case load figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 3. Pension credit recipients are people who claim pension credit either for themselves only or on behalf of a household. 4. From February 2005, estimates are derived from Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. data. Prior to this, information on receipt of carer's addition in pension credit is not available from the same source, so estimates are derived from 5 per cent. Sample data.  Source: DWP Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Pension credit expenditure 
			  £ million 
			   Expenditure in cash terms  Expenditure in 2008-09 prices 
			 2003-04(1) 143 164 
			 2004-05 447 500 
			 2005-06 593 649 
			 2006-07 717 762 
			 2007-08 856 881 
			 (1) Part year.  Source: DWP Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. data, 5 per cent. sample data and DWP accounting systems.

Council Tax: Crosby

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people he estimates were  (a) eligible for and  (b) in receipt of council tax benefit in Crosby constituency in each year since 1997.

Kitty Ussher: The information is not available in the format requested.
	The latest estimates of the number of entitled non-recipients of means-tested benefit in Great Britain are published in the report 'Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take-Up in 2006-07', copies of which are available in the Library. The report includes information about council tax benefit, income support, pension credit, housing benefit and jobseeker's allowance (income based).
	Estimates of eligibility are not available below the level of Great Britain.
	Information for recipients of council tax benefit is not available at constituency level.

Departmental Buildings

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Rochford and Southend East (James Duddridge) of 6 October 2008,  Official Report, column 59W, on departmental buildings, what the cost of each refurbishment was.

Jonathan R Shaw: Details of the costs associated with all completed refurbishments, as provided in the reply of 6 October 2008,  Official Report, column 59W, will be placed in the Library.

Departmental Land

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much surplus land  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies own; and what the (i) area and (ii) estimated monetary value of each site is.

Jonathan R Shaw: My Department and its agencies do not hold any surplus land.

Departmental Manpower

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of the headcount reduction in his Department in each year since 2004 were  (a) redeployed within his Department including its business units,  (b) redeployed elsewhere within the Civil Service, including the names of the destination departments and  (c) placed on his Department's employment register.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	From March 2004 to March 2008 staffing in the Department was reduced by 31,101 full-time equivalent posts. During this period a number of staff were declared surplus. The number of surplus staff who were redeployed internally or to other Government Departments together with the relative proportions to the reduction (where information is held) is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Surplus staff redeployed within DWP  Proportion of reduction in staffing  (percentage)  Surplus staff who transferred to other Departments  Proportion of reduction in staffing  (percentage) 
			 2004-05 Information not held. n/a Information not held n/a 
			 2005-06 1,896 30 254 4 
			 2006-07 2,830 45 147 2 
			 2007-08 1,881 30 182 3 
			 Total 6,607 35 583 3 
			  Note: Proportions are approximate as headcount reductions were measured on a full-time equivalent basis and surplus/redeployments on an individual member of staff basis. 
		
	
	Over the same period 3,272 staff, who had not been declared surplus, also voluntarily transferred to other Departments. A breakdown for each year is shown in the following table:
	
		
			   Staff transferring to other Government Department  Proportion of reduction in staffing (percentage) 
			 2004-05 1,128 11 
			 2005-06 826 13 
			 2006-07 618 10 
			 2007-08 700 11 
			 Total 3,272 11 
			  Note: Proportions are approximate as headcount reductions were measured on a full-time equivalent basis and surplus-redeployments on an individual member of staff member. 
		
	
	Only limited information is available on the Department to which all transferees moved to during the period. The available information is summarised in the following table:
	
		
			  Department  Number of staff transferring from DWP 
			 Home Office 435 
			 Ministry of Justice 137 
			 Department for Transport 116 
			 Ministry of Defence 68 
			 Department for Trade and Industry 64 
			 Scottish Executive 64 
			 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 62 
			 HM Revenue and Customs 55 
			 Department of Health 39 
			 HM Treasury and Treasury Solicitor 36 
			 Department for Education and Skills 34 
			 HM Land Registry 31 
			 Crown Prosecution Service 27 
			 Department for Communities and Local Government 21 
			 Cabinet Office 20 
			 Health and Safety Executive 10 
			 Others 75 
			 Total 1,294 
			  Note. Departmental names shown as at the time staff member transferred. 
		
	
	In addition to normal resignations and retirements over the four year period, 8,370 staff left the Department on a voluntary basis under early release schemes. Of these no member of staff was required to leave the Department against their will.
	No personnel records are kept on whether or not staff who leave the Department join the employment register.

Departmental Official Visits

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was spent on overnight accommodation by his Department's civil servants in the last 12 months.

Jonathan R Shaw: During the 12 months from September 2007 to August 2008 the Department employed an average of 114,000 staff.
	The total spent on overnight accommodation for staff in that period was £12.4 million.

Departmental Postal Services

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps his Department has taken to monitor the cost of its mail services in the last 12 months.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	The Department for Work and Pensions proactively monitors and manages the cost of its mail services to ensure best value for money from the utilisation of public funds. Over the past 12 months, the Department has continued to work closely with Royal Mail to make improved use of new postal products/services (e.g. introducing Packet post and Clean Mail advance services to DWP sites). Since the introduction of online business accounts by Royal Mail in September 2007, the Department has used this service extensively to obtain clearer visibility of management information on the postal spend across the DWP network.
	The Department has made use of liberalisation within the postal market place for down stream access from our two service delivery centres with our provider UK Mail. The Department will continue to monitor the developing postal market place, and maximise the use of pan-Government opportunities to maximise costs and efficiencies for business delivery and taxpayers.

Departmental Public Participation

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what  (a) reviews and  (b) public consultations have been initiated by his Department since 27 June 2007.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	Information on the number of reviews that the Department and its agencies have undertaken since 27 June 2007 is not held centrally. However, the Department for Work and Pensions constantly keeps under review its regulation, policy and operations.
	Current and closed public consultations are set out in the following table.
	
		
			  Date  Title 
			 21 July 2008 No one written off: reforming welfare to reward responsibility 
			 5 June 2008 Pension risk sharing consultation paper - June 2008 
			 29 May 2008 The Pension Sharing (Pension Credit Benefit) (Amendment) Regulations 2008 
			 28 May 2008 The Pension Protection Fund (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No 2) Regulations 2008 
			 12 May 2008 Launch of public debate on the future of care and support. 
			 25 April 2008 The powers of the Pensions Regulator—Amendments to the anti-avoidance measures in the Pensions Act 2004 
			 31 March 2008 Updating the Myners principles: a consultation 
			 27 March 2008 Financial Assistance Scheme (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2008 
			 6 March 2008 Financial Assistance Scheme (Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 2008 
			 6 March 2008 Revision of the annuity factors employed by the Financial Assistance Scheme 
			 3 March 2008 Independent Living Strategy Consultation 
			 19 December 2007 The Pension Protection Fund (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2008 
			 10 December 2007 Pensions: Contracting Out - Self Invested Personal Pensions and Other changes 
			 6 December 2007 Consultation on pension levies-related regulations 
			 3 December 2007 Improving specialist disability employment services 
			 25 October 2007 The Occupational Pension Schemes (Internal Dispute Resolution Procedures Consequential and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2008 
			 22 October 2007 Consultation on the Government response to the independent report on the deregulatory review of private pensions 
			 16 October 2007 The Occupational Pension Schemes (Non-European Schemes Exemption) Regulations 2007 
			 10 October 2007 Consultation on the success of the Occupational Pension Schemes (Cross-border activities) Regulations 2005 in implementing the cross-border provisions of Directive 2003/41 
			 1 October 2007 Flexible Retirement and Pension Provision 
			 29 August 2007 Financial Assistance Scheme (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2007 
			 8 August 2007 The Merger of the Health and Safety Commission and the Health and Safety Executive 
			 7 August 2007 Amendments to the Occupational Pension Schemes (Employer Debt) Regulations 2005 Draft regulations showing track changes Impact assessment—Occupational Pension Schemes (Employer Debt) Definition of employment cessation event 
			 31 July 2007 The Occupational and Personal Pension Schemes (EEA States) Regulations 2007 
			 18 July 2007 In work, better off: next steps to full employment 
			 6 July 2007 Approaches to the Calculations of Pensions Transfer Values 
			  Source Department for Work and Pensions' website

Disability Living Allowance

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of people who received  (a) disability living allowance higher rate mobility component and  (b) war pensioners' mobility component in the latest period for which figures are available; and how many vehicle excise duty exemptions were made for each group.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	At November 2007, 1,719,920 people were in receipt of the higher rate mobility component of disability living allowance. Information about the number of vehicle excise duty exemption certificates issued by this Department for people in this group could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	Information about the war pensioners' mobility component is a matter for my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Defence.

Employment and Support Allowance

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what proportion of operational staff he estimates will be fully trained to operate the IT systems for the introduction of the employment and support allowance;
	(2)  how many Jobcentre Plus branches operate the customer account management system in anticipation of the introduction of the employment and support allowance.

Tony McNulty: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Lesley Strathie:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions asking what proportion of operational staff he estimates will be fully trained to operate the IT systems for the introduction of the Employment and Support Allowance on 27th October 2008; and how many Jobcentre Plus branches operate the Customer Account Management system in anticipation of the introduction of the Employment and Support Allowance. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	For the introduction of Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), we are introducing the Customer Account Management (CAM) system to capture new claim information and we have adapted the Jobseeker's Allowance Payment System to make payments to ESA customers.
	CAM will not be deployed within Jobcentre Plus offices before the introduction of ESA. Jobcentre Plus is implementing ESA using a carefully phased approach. The CAM system will initially be deployed in one of the 64 Benefit Delivery Centres, its linked Jobcentres, and the 6 Contact Centres that will handle ESA claims from 27 October 2008. The rest of the Benefit Delivery Centre and Jobcentre network processing ESA will operate clerical data input processes, with CAM rolling out fully following an evaluation of the initial deployment of the system. Further roll out is currently planned, subject to evaluation for the first half of 2009.
	We have put in place a rolling training plan to ensure that staff can confidently use these new programmes whilst maintaining a full service to our customers.
	This phased approach to CAM will provide an opportunity to learn from the initial deployment to ensure that a fully optimised system rolls out nationally. We are confident that, with the plans we have in place, ESA will be successfully delivered in October 2008, but we do not underestimate the challenge for Jobcentre Plus that ESA represents. ESA is not simply a new benefit but a cultural shift to focus on customers' capability to improve their lives through finding and staying in work.

Health and Safety Executive: Inspections

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effect of Health and Safety Executive inspections on safety in the workplace.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	Inspection is an important part of ensuring Health and Safety laws are adhered to. Research has indicated that inspection has an influence in this respect; alongside a variety of other factors which are also influential.
	HSE influences employers in many different ways; including the provision of advice and guidance, and interventions through inspection, campaigns, blitzes and formal enforcement. The prime factor which governs whether there are fatalities, injuries or ill heath at work is the motivation of the employer. Changes in employer motivation cannot solely be achieved through HSE inspection.
	HSE regularly reviews and revisits the impact of its interventions on health and safety outcomes. HSE is already developing further research that assesses the impact of inspection and associated activities, over and above the influence of other factors, on health and safety outcomes.

Health and Safety Executive: Inspections

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Health and Safety Executive inspections he expects to take place in 2008.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) expects to increase its operational productivity by 2 per cent. in 2008-09, compared to that in 2007-08. In 2007-08, HSE spent 190,561 days on frontline activity which includes inspection, investigation, assessment of safety cases and other work.

Health and Safety Executive: Inspections

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Health and Safety Executive inspections took place in each of the last three years.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) records the amount of lime spent on frontline activity which includes inspection, investigation, assessment of safety cases and other work, rather than the number of inspections carried out.
	For the three years; 2005-06, 2006-07 and 2007-08, the time spent by HSE on frontline activity was:
	
		
			  H ealth and Safety  E xecutive Inspections 
			  Frontline activity  Number of d ays 
			 2005-06 174,040 
			 2006-07 184,843 
			 2007-08 190,561

Health and Safety Executive: Manpower

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many inspectors were employed by the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate in each of the last five years, broken down by division.

Jonathan R Shaw: The answer to the question is provided in the following table.
	
		
			  N umber of inspectors( 1)  working in the Health and Safety Executive's Nuclear Directorate 1 April 2004 to 1 April 2008 
			  Headcount 
			  Division  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Director of NSD 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Civil Nuclear Power Regulation 56 58 53 61 44 
			 Nuclear Chemical and Research Site Regulation 58 53 48 50 54 
			 Defence Nuclear Facilities Regulation 38 40 41 41 39 
			 Operational Strategy, Communication and Stakeholder Engagement and Business Systems(2) 29 22 25 28 17 
			 Nuclear Reactor Generic Design Assessment 0 0 0 0 18 
			 Total 182 174 168 181 173 
			 (1) These are primarily nuclear installations inspectors, but also include a small number of other HSE-grade inspectors involved in the work of regulating nuclear installations. At 1 October 2008, there were 164 nuclear installations inspectors in post (approximately 159 full-time equivalents). (2) These figures include 17 corporate topic group inspectors in April 2004, 10 in April 2005, 8 in April 2006, and 8 in April 2007. ND managed two of HSE's corporate topic groups on radiation and on electrical and control instrumentation but these did not contribute to the work of regulating nuclear installations.

Incapacity Benefit

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the Government's policy is on the future of incapacity benefit; what related initiatives he  (a) has recently introduced and  (b) plans to introduce; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 17 July 2008
	The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	From April 2008, Pathways to Work support has been available to everyone in Great Britain on incapacity benefits. This is mandatory for new customers.
	From October 2008 incapacity benefits will be replaced for new customers by the employment and support allowance. Employment and support allowance will include the new work capability assessment, focusing on what people can do, not what they cannot.
	From 2009 Pathways to Work support will be mandatory for existing claimants under the age of 25. Also from 2009, we plan to start applying the new work capability assessment to incapacity benefits customers who are under the age of 25 to establish entitlement to employment and support allowance and to the rest of the incapacity benefits claimants from 2010, as and when customers are due to have their benefit entitlement reassessed. This means that over a three year period everyone on incapacity benefits will have been reassessed using the new test, and transferred either to employment and support allowance or to jobseekers allowance.

Incapacity Benefit

Angela Browning: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what transitional support will be available for incapacity benefit claimants who fail the new work capability assessment and move onto other benefits; and what account this support will take of  (a) whether people continue to have disabilities and  (b) the period for which people have been out of work.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 21 July 2008
	The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	The new work capability assessment is a fairer and more accurate test of capability for work than the current personal capability assessment.
	Those customers who move to jobseeker's allowance following a work capability assessment will have voluntary early entry to the supported job-search stage of the new jobseeker's allowance and flexible new deal programme, at the discretion of their personal adviser. All longer-term job seekers will have the enhanced personal, specialised support of the flexible new deal.

Incapacity Benefit

Angela Browning: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the financial effects of the introduction of employment and support allowance on couples in the support group during the course of their claim, compared to the rates of payment of incapacity benefit; and whether these effects will apply to couples where one or both are claiming on the grounds of a terminal illness.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 21 July 2008
	The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	Employment and support allowance will replace incapacity benefit and income support paid on grounds of incapacity from 27 October 2008. Compared to the existing system, couples in the support group who would have had no entitlement to the enhanced disability premium will receive £10.30 a week more under employment support allowance than income support paid on grounds of incapacity. Those who would have been entitled to the couple rate of income support and also already entitled to the enhanced disability premium would receive £7.85 a week less. There are no actual cash losers as existing customers will have the cash level of their existing benefits protected.
	Employment and support allowance rates are paid after 14 weeks of the claim whereas the higher income support rates are generally paid after 52 weeks of incapacity or 28 weeks for those who are terminally ill or receive the higher rate care component of disability living allowance. In employment and support allowance the higher rates of benefit are paid immediately to people who are terminally ill.

Income Support: Lone Parents

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of lone parents affected by the changes to the eligibility rules for income support coming into effect in November 2008 who have children  (a) living in (i) relative poverty and (ii) absolute poverty before the changes came into effect and  (b) who will be living in each such state immediately after the changes came into effect; and if he will make a statement.

Kitty Ussher: The most common and internationally recognised threshold to measure relative low income poverty is income below 60 per cent. of the contemporary median. A threshold of 60 per cent. of the 1998-99 median has been used to measure absolute poverty. Specific information regarding low income for the UK is available in 'Households Below Average Income 1994-95 to 2006-07'.
	'Ready for work: full employment in our generation', Cm 7290, (published in December 2007) announced increased obligations for lone parents to be introduced from November 2008. Lone parents who are claiming income support solely based on being a lone parent move onto a more appropriate benefit when their youngest child is: 12 and over from November 2008; 10 and over from October 2009; seven and over from October 2010.
	The Department's current estimates suggest that the changes to the eligibility rules for income support for lone parents will, by helping more lone parents into employment, help lift around an extra 70,000 children out of relative low income after five years.
	The following table shows the number of children aged seven and over in lone parent families in receipt of income support in relative and absolute low income at 2006-07.
	
		
			  Numbers of children aged seven or over in lone parent families where their parent is in receipt of income support and the youngest child in the family is aged seven or over in households with incomes below 60 per cent. of contemporary and 1998-99 median income, before and after housing costs, United Kingdom, 2006-07 
			  Million 
			   Number in low income households 
			  Low income threshold  Before housing costs  After housing costs 
			 Below 60 per cent, of contemporary median 0.3 0.4 
			 Below 60 per cent. of 1998-99 median 0.1 0.3 
			  Notes: 1. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income (HBAI) data. 2. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. 3. The reference period for HBAI figures is single financial years. 4. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication 'HBAI' series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or "equivalised") for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. 5. The figures are based on OECD equivalisation factors. 6. Numbers of children have been rounded to the nearest 100,000. 7. Figures have been presented on both a Before Housing Cost (BHC) and After Housing Cost (AHC) basis. For BHC, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, structural insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income, while for AHC they are.  Source: Households Below Average Income 2006-07, DWP 
		
	
	Some lone parents are exempt from these changes and will still be able to receive income support. These include lone parents: who are in receipt of carer's allowance; have a child for whom they are receiving the middle or higher rate care component of disability living allowance; who are fostering.

Income Support: Mortgages

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the Answer of 6 November 2008,  Official Report, column 704W, on income support: mortgage costs, if he will review the qualification criteria to take account of family circumstances where two incomes have been necessary to meet mortgage repayments.

Kitty Ussher: We are currently considering all the ways in which we can help people, including couples, who are having difficulty in paying their mortgage.

Independent Case Examiner for the Child Support Agency: Manpower

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff were employed by the Independent Case Examiner in each of the last three years.

Kitty Ussher: The information is in the table.
	
		
			   Number of staff in post 
			 4 April 2005 83 
			 3 April 2006 90.6 
			 2 April 2007 99.3

Independent Living Fund

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what contribution the Independent Living Fund makes to the delivery of his policy on personalised care and support for adults.

Jonathan R Shaw: The Independent Living Fund plays a vital role in the delivery of policy on personalised care and support for adults.
	The fund works in partnership with local authorities by making direct cash payments to enable severely disabled people to live independently. Over the last 20 years the fund has assisted more than 45,000 people to live independently in the community and we know it is much appreciated by its users.
	The Independent Living Fund was one of six funding streams that have taken part in the Department of Health led individual budget pilots. The Government are currently considering the findings from the evaluation of the individual budget pilots and will look carefully at issues identified during the pilot phase.

Independent Living Funds

Roberta Blackman-Woods: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to implement the recommendations of the 2007 review of the Independent Living Funds.

Jonathan R Shaw: The report of the Independent Living Fund review recognised the ground-breaking role played by the fund in enabling severely disabled people to live independently.
	The report included 68 recommendations, a number of which have already been implemented by the trustees.
	The recommendations specifically on the future of the fund largely relate to the outcome of the Individual Budgets pilots. The Government are currently considering the findings from the Individual Budget pilots evaluation report which was published on 21 October 2008 and will look carefully at issues identified during the pilot phase.

Industrial Accidents: Construction

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many construction industry workers died as a result of workplace accidents in  (a) 2005,  (b) 2006 and  (c) 2007.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	
		
			  Fatal injuries to workers in the construction industry( 1) 
			   Year( 2) 
			   2005-06  2006-07  2007-08* 
			 Employees 43 54 54 
			 Self employed 17 25 18 
			 Workers(3) 60 79 72 
			 (1) Section F 'Construction', determined according to Standard Industrial Classification (SIC). This system is used in UK official statistics for classifying businesses by the main type of economic activity they are engaged in, and is the responsibility of the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The latest version is 'SIC 2003'. (2) The annual basis is the planning year 1 April to 31 March. Statistics for 2007-08 are provisional, denoted by '*'. (3) The term 'workers' includes employees and the self-employed combined.  Source:  RIDDOR (The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995)

Industrial Health and Safety: Construction

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to improve the safety of high tower cranes.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	Work to improve safety arising from the use of tower cranes in construction is already being taken forward in a number of ways by both the construction industry and the Health and Safety Executive. Bodies such as the Strategic Forum for Construction and the Construction Plant-Hire Association are working to improve industry guidance on matters such as crane maintenance, crane operator competence and working conditions and better sharing of good practice. As well as giving substantial support to the work of industry, the Health and Safety Executive is taking action to improve safety through a mix of enforcement initiatives and the provision of guidance. Future work will also take account of the findings from the inquiries into recent accidents involving tower cranes that the Health and Safety Executive are currently undertaking.

Industrial Health and Safety: Construction

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Health and Safety Executive inspections of construction sites took place in  (a) 2005,  (b) 2006 and  (c) 2007.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) records the amount of time spent on frontline activity—which includes inspection, investigation, assessment of safety cases and other work—rather than the number of inspections carried out.
	For the three years 2005-06, 2006-07 and 2007-08 the estimated amount of frontline activity spent on construction was:
	
		
			  Health and Safety Executive Inspections 
			  Frontline activity( 1)  Number of days 
			 2005-06 23,153 
			 2006-07 27,222 
			 2007-08 28,545 
			 (1 )These figures exclude time spent travelling to and from workplaces which have been visited. 
		
	
	These figures are based on a proportion of HSE's overall frontline activity in each of these years, reflecting the size of HSE's Construction Division compared to the Field Operations Directorate as a whole.

Minimum Wage: Crosby

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Crosby constituency experienced a rise in income as a result of the introduction of the national minimum wage; and what estimate he has made of the number of such people whose income is affected by the national minimum wage in 2008.

Patrick McFadden: I have been asked to reply.
	Evidence from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) shows that a growing number of people are affected by the National Minimum Wage (NMW). BERR estimates using ASHE data that in 1999 around 1 million people in the UK were covered by the introduction of the NMW. This rises to around 1.1 million people covered by the October 2008 uprating of the NMW. This reflects an increasing importance of the NMW when determining the hourly wage of the low paid. The adult NMW has risen by around 59 per cent during this period from £3.60 to £5.73 per hour. The rise in the NMW has been greater than average earnings over this period.
	Information for individual parliamentary constituencies is not readily available in the ASHE dataset. However, information is available on a government office region basis. In 1999 around 120,000 employees in North West and Mersey were covered by the introduction of the National Minimum Wage. This estimate is based on Spring 1998 ASHE data. Using Spring 2008 ASHE data we estimate that around 130,000 employees were covered by the latest October 2008 NMW upratings.
	It is difficult to isolate the effect of the NMW on income as income is affected by hours worked and other sources of income such as tax credits. However, evidence suggests that since its introduction the NMW is affecting more people and the hourly wage is rising faster than average earnings benefiting the lowest paid in the economy.

Motability

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his Department's role is in the administration of the motability scheme; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	Motability is a charitable company incorporated by Royal Charter. It is responsible for the administration of the Motability scheme.

National Insurance

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many national insurance registration numbers have been issued to  (a) non-UK nationals of each nationality and  (b) UK citizens in (i) each year and (ii) each quarter since 1st January 2004.

Tony McNulty: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave on 10 November 2008,  Official Report, column 917W, on the number of national insurance registrations issued to adult non-UK nationals in each year since 1 January 2004.
	The number of national insurance numbers issued to adult non-UK nationals in each quarter since 1 January 2004 has been placed in the Library.
	The majority of UK nationals are registered with national insurance numbers (NINOs) as part of the juvenile registration process just prior to the age of 16. A small number of UK nationals apply for a NINO as adults and would go through the adult NINO allocation process. The data are not held in a format which allows us to extract a figure for UK nationals registered for a NINO under the adult NINO allocation process.
	Figures for the juvenile registration process are as follows:
	
		
			  Period  Juvenile registration volumes (thousand)  Percentage change 
			 2003-04 753.6 — 
			 2004-05 743.2 -1.4 
			 2005-06 722.9 -2.7 
			 2006-07 772.1 +6.8 
			 2007-08 667.3 -15.7 
			  Notes: 1. Reporting period for juvenile registration is 1 April to 31 March. 2. For the majority of juveniles the registration process takes place just prior to the 16(th) birthday. However, some juveniles may initially miss out on this process, but can be recorded as part of this process until the age of 19. 3. There may be a small number of young foreign nationals who obtain a national insurance number through the juvenile registration process. These will not appear in the foreign nationals total for adult national insurance number registrations. However, the majority of juvenile registrations are for UK nationals.  Source: Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs National Insurance Recording System (NIRS2) Management Information 
		
	
	The fall in registrations during 2007-08 was due to delays in the administrative allocation process following the loss of HMRC child benefit data. The backlog of registrations was completed on 8 May 2008
	Figures for the juvenile registration process by quarter since 1 January 2004 are as follows:
	
		
			  Period  Juvenile registrations volumes ( T housand) 
			  2004-05  
			 January 2004 to March 2005 181.0 
			   
			  2005-06  
			 April 2005 to June 2005 193.0 
			 July 2005 to September 2005 183.1 
			 October 2005 to December 2005 164.0 
			 January 2005 to March 2006 182.8 
			   
			  2006-07  
			 April 2006 to June 2006 199.3 
			 July 2006 to September 2006 202.1 
			 October 2006 to December 2006 187.7 
			 January 2006 to March 2007 183.0 
			   
			  2007-08  
			 April 2007 to June 2007 189.6 
			 July 2007 to September 2007 198.1 
			 October 2007 to December2007 113.8 
			 January 2007 to March 2008 165.8 
			  Notes: 1. Reporting period for juvenile registration is 1 April to 31 March. 2. For the majority of juveniles the registration process takes place just prior to the 16th birthday. However, some juveniles may initially miss out on this process, but can be recorded as part of this process until the age of 19. 3. There may be a small number of young foreign nationals who obtain a national insurance number through the juvenile registration process. These will not appear in the foreign nationals total for adult national insurance number registrations. However, the majority of juvenile registrations are for UK nationals  Source: Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs National Insurance Recording System (NIRS2) Management Information

Pension Credit: Enfield

Joan Ryan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners in Enfield, North constituency received pension credits in each year since 2003.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of household recipients and individual beneficiaries of pension credit in Enfield, North ,  2003-08 
			   Household recipients  Individual beneficiaries 
			 November 2003 3,240 3,930 
			 May 2004 3,620 4,430 
			 May 2005 3,960 4,870 
			 May 2006 4,050 5,010 
			 May 2007 4,090 5,030 
			 May 2008 4,120 5,050 
			  Notes: 1. Case loads are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Household recipients are those people who claim pension credit either for themselves only or on behalf of a household. 3. Individual beneficiaries includes both claimants and their partners.  Source: DWP Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent. data

Pension Credit: South Yorkshire

Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners in  (a) Doncaster,  (b) Barnsley and  (c) South Yorkshire received pension credit in each year since its inception.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is in the following tables.
	
		
			  N umber of household recipients and individual beneficiaries of pension credit in Doncaster, Barnsley and South Yorkshire ,  2003-08 
			   Doncaster  Barnsley  South Yorkshire 
			   Household recipients  Individual beneficiaries  Household recipients  Individual beneficiaries  Household recipients  Individual beneficiaries 
			 November 2003 11,500 13,960 9,790 11,880 57,970 70,410 
			 May 2004 14,510 17,890 11,840 14,570 69,670 85,880 
			 May 2005 15,780 19,520 12,530 15,480 74,020 91,640 
			 May 2006 16,150 20,070 12,610 15,650 74,390 92,480 
			 May 2007 16,300 20,310 12,720 15,860 74,790 93,140 
			 May 2008 16,230 20,260 12,690 15,840 74,110 92,360 
			  Notes: 1. Caseloads are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Household recipients are those people who claim pension credit either for themselves only or on behalf of a household. 3. Individual beneficiaries includes both claimants and their partners.  Source:  DWP Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100 per cent data.

Post Office Card Account

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost of compensation to be paid to unsuccessful bidders for the Post Office Card Account contract.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 18 November 2008
	 The other bidders who were still in the competition at the point we halted it will be reimbursed for their reasonable bid costs.

Post Office Card Account

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the cost to his Department was of the tendering and bidding process for the Post Office Card Account.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 18 November 2008
	 It is not possible to give a precise figure as many of the staff involved were undertaking work on the procurement process alongside other duties, or work which would have been necessary in any event to put in place a new contract with the Post Office.

Post Office Card Account

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his latest estimate is of the costs of the Post Office Card Account tender process over the last three years; and how much compensation will be paid to participants in the tendering process.

Rosie Winterton: It is not possible to give a precise figure for the costs of the tendering process as many of the staff involved were undertaking work on the procurement process alongside other duties, or work which would have been necessary in any event to put in place a new contract with the Post Office.
	The other bidders who were still in the competition at the point we halted it will be reimbursed for their reasonable bid costs. The precise amount is still to be agreed.

Post Office Card Account: Romsey

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many residents of Romsey constituency  (a) have a Post Office card account and  (b) had a Post Office card account in each of the last five years.

Rosie Winterton: Information is not available in the precise format requested.
	The following table shows the number of benefit and pension accounts paid into a Post Office card account in Romsey constituency in each of the last five years.
	
		
			  Post Office Card Accounts 
			 As at April each year  Number 
			 2004 560 
			 2005 3,700 
			 2006 3,660 
			 2007 3,480 
			 2008 3,210 
			  Note s : 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Figures refer to payment accounts live and in payment on the specified date. Claimants with more than one account will be counted for each account.  Source:  DWP, Information Directorate.

Poverty: Children

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of children in child poverty in  (a) Glasgow North West constituency,  (b) Glasgow and  (c) Scotland.

Kitty Ussher: Our public service agreement "Halve the number of children in poverty by 2010-11, on the way to eradicating child poverty by 2020" includes a range of indicators related to low income for children. Our preferred measure of relative low income poverty for children is defined as being in a household with a household income of less than 60 per cent. of the contemporary median income on a before housing cost basis.
	Latest information for Scotland shows that 210,000 children in Scotland were in households with household incomes below 60 per cent. of median income on a before housing cost basis. The data source does not allow us to provide robust numbers for estimates below this level.
	 Notes:
	1. The source of this information is the 2006-07 Scottish Households Below Average Income publication.
	2. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication "Households Below Average Income" series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living.
	3. The figures are based on OECD equivalisation factors.
	4. Figures are based on survey data and as such are subject to a degree of sampling and non-sampling error.
	5. Number of children in low-income households have been rounded to the nearest 10,000 children.

Poverty: Children

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children in Crosby constituency were living in absolute poverty in  (a) 1997 and  (b) the latest date for which figures are available; and what percentage of all children living in absolute poverty this represented in each year.

Kitty Ussher: The information requested is not available.
	Our child poverty statistics, published in the Households Below Average Income series, only allow a breakdown of the number of children in absolute poverty at Government office region level. Information is therefore not available at parliamentary constituency level.

Poverty: Pensioners

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners are living in absolute poverty in Crosby constituency; and how many did so in 1997.

Rosie Winterton: Poverty is a complex and multidimensional issue and, as such, there are many possible measures of poverty.
	Our Public Service Agreement "Tackle poverty and promote greater independence and wellbeing in later life" includes a range of indicators related to low income for pensioners. These are relative low income (below 50 and 60 per cent. contemporary median household income), and absolute low income (below 60 per cent. of 1998-99 median income uprated in line with prices), all measured after housing costs have been taken into account.
	The data source does not allow us to provide robust numbers for estimates below the level of Government Office Region. Information for the north west on the numbers of pensioners below 60 per cent. of 1998-99 median income uprated in line with prices is given in the following table.
	
		
			  Number of pensioners below 60 per cent. of the 1998-99 median household income uprated in line with prices after housing costs, North West 
			   Number (million) 
			 1997-98 to 1999-2000 0.3 
			 2004-05 to 2006-07 0.1 
			  Notes: 1. Three survey year averages are given as regional single year estimates are subject to volatility. 2. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication 'Households Below Average Income' (HBAI) series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or "equivalised") for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. 3. The figures are based on OECD equivalisation factors. 4. Figures are based on survey data and as such are subject to a degree of sampling and non-sampling error. 5. Numbers of pensioners in low income households have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 pensioners.

Poverty: Pensioners

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners were living in poverty in each region of the UK  (a) after housing costs and  (b) before housing costs in each year since 1990.

Rosie Winterton: Poverty is a complex and multidimensional issue and, as such, there are many possible measures of poverty.
	Our public service agreement "Tackle poverty and promote greater independence and wellbeing in later life" includes a range of indicators related to low income for pensioners. These are relative low income (below 50 and 60 per cent. contemporary median household income), and absolute low income (below 60 per cent. of 1998-99 median income uprated in line with prices), all measured after housing costs have been taken into account.
	Information that is available on the number of pensioners living below 60 per cent. of contemporary median household income, after and before housing costs, by Government office region is given in the following tables.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of pensioners falling below 60 per cent. of contemporary media household income, after housing costs by region or country 
			  Million 
			   1994-95 to 1996-97  1995-96 to 1997-98  1996-97 to 1998-99  1997-98 to 1999-2000  1998-99 to 2000-01  1999-2000 to 2001-02  2000-01 to 2002-03  2001-02 to 2003-04  2002-03 to 2004-05  2003-04 to 2005-06  2004-05 to 2006-07 
			 North East 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 
			 North West 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.2 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 East Midlands 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 West Midlands 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 East of England 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 London 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 South East 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.2 
			 South West 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 Scotland 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.1 
			 Wales 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 
			 Northern Ireland n/a n/a n/a n/a 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number of pensioners falling below 60 per cent. of contemporary media house hold income, before  housing costs by region or country 
			  Million 
			   1994-95 to 1996-97  1995-96 to 1997-98  1996-97 to 1998-99  1997-98 to 1999-2000  1998-99 to 2000-01  1999-2000 to 2001-02  2000-01 to 2002-03  2001-02 to 2003-04  2002-03 to 2004-05  2003-04 to 2005-06  2004-0 5  to 2006-07 
			 North East 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 
			 North West 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 East Midlands 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 West Midlands 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.2 
			 East of England 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 London 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 South East 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 
			 South West 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 Scotland 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 
			 Wales 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 
			 Northern Ireland n/a n/a n/a n/a 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 
			  Notes: 1. Three survey year averages are given as regional single year estimates are subject to volatility. 2. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication 'Households Below Average Income' (HBAI) series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or "equivalised") for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living.  3. The figures are based on OECD equivalisation factors. 4. Figures are based on survey data and as such are subject to a degree of sampling and non-sampling error. 5. Figures have been presented on both a Before Housing Cost and After Housing Cost basis. For Before Housing Cost, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, structural insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income, while for After Housing Cost they are. 6. Numbers of pensioners in low income households have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 pensioners.  7. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 8. Data for Northern Ireland are only available from 1998-99 to 2000-01 onwards.  9. Specific information regarding low income for the United Kingdom is available in "Households Below Average Income 1994/95-2006/07".

Social Security Benefits

Angela Browning: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will place in the Library a copy of the Work-Focused Health Related Assessment questionnaire which claimants of employment and support allowance will be required to complete from October 2008.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 21 July 2008
	The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	Claimants of employment and support allowance will not be required to fill in a questionnaire in relation to the Work Focussed Health Related Assessment. The Work Focused Health Related Assessment is a discussion between the customer and the health care professional carrying out the work capability assessment. Health professionals will use an aide-mémoire for this discussion, and a copy has been placed in the Library.
	The purpose of the Work Focused Health Related Assessment is to explore with customers their aspirations for engaging in or returning to work, and their views of the help that would support them getting back to work. It will also offer advice about health related interventions that will support a return to work. After the Work Focused Health Related Assessment the health care professional will complete a report and send a copy of that report to the customer.

Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  whether he has set a target for the proportion of successful appeals for  (a) incapacity for work cases and  (b) disability living allowance cases;
	(2)  whether his Department has a performance indicator for the proportion of successful appeals that will trigger a review of the quality of initial decision-making for  (a) incapacity for work cases and  (b) disability living allowance cases.

Jonathan R Shaw: There is no target for the proportion of successful incapacity benefits appeals.
	There is no performance indicator for the proportion of successful incapacity benefits and disability living allowance appeals that will trigger a review of the quality of initial decision-making.
	The Pension, Disability and Carers Service has an internal target that no more than 45 per cent. of disability living allowance cases that are heard by an appeal tribunal should be successful or changed.
	Jobcentre Plus and the Pension, Disability and Carers Service will also continue to work with the Tribunals Service to monitor decision making issues and identify any areas for improvement.

Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the total cost to his Department was of appeals relating to  (a) incapacity for work cases,  (b) disability living allowance cases and  (c) such cases in which the appeal was successfully defended by the Secretary of State in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the average cost of each case in each category was.

Jonathan R Shaw: The cost of incapacity benefit appeals only started to be measured separately in April 2008. It is, therefore, not yet possible to provide the information requested.
	The total cost to the Pension, Disability and Carers Service of processing all disability living allowance appeals in 2007-08 was an estimated £11.8 million. The average cost of each appeal was an estimated £134. Information about the cost of those appeals that were successfully defended by the Secretary of State is not available.

Social Security Benefits: Employment

Angela Browning: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether earnings from permitted work done by claimants of employment and support allowance, whether income-based or contribution-based, will be disregarded as income for the purposes of assessing entitlement to other benefits.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 21 July 2008
	The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	Claimants entitled to both income-related and contributory employment and support allowance will be permitted to earn up to £88.50 a week and retain benefit. Where a person retains entitlement to income-related employment and support allowance they will continue to receive full housing benefit and council tax benefit. For people not entitled to income-related employment and support allowance, housing benefit and council tax benefit disregards the first £20 of any earnings. We are currently looking at how the permitted work rules of employment and support allowance will interact with housing benefit as part of the housing benefit review announced in the Budget.

Social Security Benefits: Lone Parents

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he made of the effect of possible higher unemployment levels on  (a) the labour market and  (b) Jobcentre Plus when drafting the Social Security (Lone Parents and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2008.

Kitty Ussher: The labour market is dynamic with millions of moves between employment, unemployment and inactivity every year. Job opportunities will continue to become available. At present there are around 600,000 job vacancies in the economy.
	We are committed to providing unemployed people with support to get back into work. Jobcentre Plus provides information, advice and access to skills development to help people return to employment as quickly as possible.
	We have made a comprehensive assessment of Jobcentre Plus's capacity to implement the changes and are satisfied that the plans Jobcentre Plus has in place will enable the organisation to manage the change. Plans include: additional resources to manage the move of lone parents from income support on to other benefits; supporting lone parents in receipt of jobseeker's allowance or employment and support allowance; communicating with staff; and learning and development for staff.

Social Security Benefits: Lone Parents

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what safeguards have been put in place in  (a) the Social Security (Lone Parents and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2008 and  (b) Jobcentre Plus operations to protect the most vulnerable lone parents.

Kitty Ussher: We propose introducing additional flexibilities and safeguards in regulations. These will meet the specific needs of parents, particularly lone parents, and further safeguard the welfare of children.
	Jobseeker's allowance regulations will be amended to enable Jobcentre Plus staff to consider just cause and good cause so that a parent who is claiming or receiving jobseeker's allowance may not be penalised if they leave paid employment, or fail to take up paid employment, because appropriate or affordable child care is not available. The amendments will also give Jobcentre Plus staff additional flexibilities to treat parents as available for, or actively seeking, work in certain circumstances. For example, if a child is excluded from school or if there would be no reasonable prospects of a person with caring responsibilities obtaining suitable jobs in the area if they were to reduce their hours to a minimum of 16 hours a week. The existing jobseeker's allowance hardship regime will be extended to include lone parents as a vulnerable group, and Jobcentre Plus staff will be able to consider whether travel time to a job is reasonable, taking health or caring responsibilities into account.
	We also propose to introduce operational safeguards which will ensure that lone parents affected by the introduction of these changes and making a new claim are aware of their obligations to attend quarterly work-focused interviews, and that voluntary interviews will be available to them six weeks before their entitlement to income support ends. Also, if they fail to attend a fortnightly job review, at least one attempt at contacting them will be made by telephone on the day the meeting was missed. If no contact is made, a letter will be sent to their home address telling them that if they do not make contact within five working days their entitlement to benefit will end.

Social Security Benefits: Post Offices

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of each payable benefit was transacted through  (a) a Post Office card account,  (b) another account at a post office and  (c) a bank account not accessed at a post office in (i) each local authority area and (ii) each parliamentary constituency in the last period for which figures are available.

Rosie Winterton: Information is not available in the format requested.
	Overall, around 78 per cent. of benefit accounts are paid into a bank account and around 20 per cent. are paid into a Post Office card account. About 60 per cent. of bank accounts can be accessed at the Post Office.

State Retirement Pension

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many individuals have deferred their state pension in each year since 1997;
	(2)  how many individuals deferred their state pensions in each of the last 10 years.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is not available. Information available on the number of people who have received a deferral reward, and the type of reward received, is in the following table. Figures for 1997 to 1999 are not available.
	
		
			  12 months to March each year :  Total number of customers who received a deferral reward  Number receiving increments only  Number receiving increments and lump sum  Number receiving lump sum only 
			 2008 41,100 23,800 5,400 11,800 
			 2007 35,800 28,500 3,500 3,800 
			 2006 44,100 44,100 0 0 
			 2005 43,300 43,300 0 0 
			 2004 41,200 41,200 0 0 
			 2003 38,400 38,400 0 0 
			 2002 43,000 43,000 0 0 
			 2001 44,000 44,000 0 0 
			 2000(1) 25,600 25,600 0 0 
			 (1) Figures for 2000 are for six months to March only  Notes: 1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 100 and may not sum due to rounding. 2. Numbers are based on a 5 per cent. sample rated in line with the Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study (WPLS) total caseload, and are therefore subject to a degree of sampling variation. 3. New rules for deferral came into effect in April 2005 and lump payments became available from April 2006. This data were not available on the datasets until September 2006. A person who deferred their state pension before April 2005 would qualify for increments for the period up to April 2005 and may have a choice of either a lump sum payment or an increment for the period of deferral from April 2005. This means some people may have both an increment and a lump sum payment. 4. The number receiving a 'deferral reward' is the number of people with a lump sum or increments for the latest data and the number of people with increments for the data prior to September 2006. (This does not include inherited increments from a late spouse.) 5. Data regarding increments prior to September 1999 are not sufficiently robust to be released.  Source: Information Directorate 5 per cent. sample

State Retirement Pension

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many individuals received deferred state pensions in each of the last 12 months.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is not available. Information on the number of people who have received a deferral reward in the 12 months ending March 2008, and the type of reward received, is in the following table:
	
		
			  12 months to March 2008 
			   Number 
			 Total number of customers who received a deferral reward 41,100 
			 Number receiving increments only 23,800 
			 Number receiving increments and lump sum 5,400 
			 Number receiving lump sum only 11,800 
			  Notes: 1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 100 and may not sum due to rounding. 2. Numbers are based on a 5 per cent. sample rated in line with the Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study (WPLS) total caseload, and are therefore subject to a degree of sampling variation. 3. New rules for deferral came into effect in April 2005 and lump payments became available. A person who deferred their state pension before April 2005 would qualify for increments for the period up to April 2005 and may have a choice of either a lump sum payment or an increment for the period of deferral from April 2005. This means some people may have both an increment and a lump sum payment. 4. The number receiving a 'deferral reward' is the number of people with a lump sum or increments for the latest data and the number of people with increments for the data prior to September 2006. (This does not include inherited increments from a late spouse.)  Source: Information Directorate (IFD) 5 per cent. sample

Steam Rollers: Accidents

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have been  (a) killed and  (b) injured by steam rollers in each of the last five years.

Jonathan R Shaw: Based on reports submitted to the Health and Safety Executive as required by the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995, the number of deaths and injuries involving road rollers is as follows:
	
		
			   Non-fatal  Fatal 
			 2003-04 7 0 
			 2004-05 10 1 
			 2005-06 9 0 
			 2006-07 9 0 
			 2007-08 3 0

Sunbeds: Health Hazards

Si�n James: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he expects the outcomes of the Health and Safety Executive's consultation on revisions to guidance on the use of UV tanning equipment to be published; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following answer was provided to the hon. Member on 17 September 2008, however, due to a procedural error it was not published in the  Official Report. The answer is as follows:
	The consultation closed on 17 July and when the comments have been considered, the Health and Safety Executive intends to publish revised guidance as soon as possible.

Taxis

Mark Prisk: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was claimed in expenses for taxi travel by officials from  (a) his Department and  (b) its Executive agencies in (i) 2006-07, (ii) 2005-06, (iii) 2004-05, (iv) 2003-04 and (v) 2002-03; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The information requested on taxi travel expenditure is available only from 2005-06 and is recorded at departmental level (which includes the Department's Executive agencies) only. Details of the separate payments made by the Department's agencies could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The Department's expenditure on taxis in the years for which information is available is as follows:
	
		
			million 
			 2005-06 1.89 
			 2006-07 2.45 
			 2007-08 2.02 
		
	
	This amount of expenditure should be viewed in the context of the size of the DWP work force of over 100,000 employees and the nature of its business operations that cover an office network of over 1,000 locations across Great Britain.
	The Department has clear policies in place which not only limit the circumstances under which officials can justify the use of taxis but also challenges the need to travel and strongly advocates the use of video and teleconferences wherever these facilities are practical alternatives.

Winter Fuel Payments: Chronically Sick

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent estimate his Department has made of the likely cost of extending the winter fuel allowance to terminally ill people who would not otherwise qualify; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: Winter fuel payments are made to people aged 60 or over including those who are disabled or terminally ill.
	The annual cost of extending winter fuel payments to people aged under 60 receiving disability living allowance under the special rules relating to a terminal illness is estimated to be approximately 6.6 million. This is an estimate for 2008-09 and is based on a 250 payment, which includes a one off additional payment of 50 for this year.
	The extra heating needs of terminally ill people can arise at any time of year, not just in the winter months. Help is available for terminally ill people through disability living allowance, Attendance allowance and the disability premiums in the income-related benefits which have a substantially higher annual value and are spread over a 52 week period. In addition, where a disability premium is paid in an income-related benefit, a cold weather payment is payable in periods of very cold weather. Together, these payments are designed to meet the extra costs, including heating, of terminally ill people.

Winter Fuel Payments: Crosby

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners aged 60 and over have claimed the winter fuel payment in  (a) Crosby constituency and  (b) England in each year since its inception; and what proportion of such pensioners have not applied for the payment in each year.

Rosie Winterton: Around 98 per cent. of winter fuel payments are made automatically without the need to claim.
	
		
			  Winter fuel payments made to people aged 60 or over from inception 
			   Crosby constituency  Great Britain 
			 1999-2000 14,965 10,084,130 
			 2000-01 16,615 11,105,750 
			 2001-02 16,835 11,201,900 
			 2002-03 17,020 11,348,040 
			 2003-04 16,955 11,468,240 
			 2004-05 16,900 11,401,170 
			 2005-06 17,090 11,514,760 
			 2006-07 17,320 11,702,900 
			  Notes: 1. Figures rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Parliamentary constituencies, local authorities and Government office regions are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant ONS postcode directory.  Source: Information directorate 100 per cent data. 
		
	
	Information relating to winter fuel payments for the winters of 1997-98 and 1998-99 is not available.
	Information regarding Northern Ireland is a matter for the Northern Ireland Office.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Acceptable Behaviour Contracts

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when acceptable behaviour contracts will be extended to young people caught drinking and behaving anti-socially in public.

Jacqui Smith: Antisocial behaviour contracts (ABCs) are already available to tackle young people caught drinking and behaving antisocially in public.

Agricultural Machinery: Theft

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent steps she has taken to reduce the rate of theft of agricultural equipment.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 17 November 2008
	The Government's crime strategy builds upon the achievements of the last 10 years in reducing crime and disorder but moves away from centrally imposed targets instead making local agencies accountable and responsive to the needs and priorities of the local community. This means that local areas can focus greatest effort on reducing those crimes that matter most to people locally, whatever the crime.
	Where the theft of agricultural machinery emerges as a pressing local issue we would encourage local police forces and their partners in Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships to devote resources to tackling this crime. To this end the National Policing Improvement Agency has produced a practical guide specifically for those facing the challenges of policing rural areas, titled Neighbourhood Policing in Rural Communities (2008). This aims to support the police in tailoring their approach to the needs of the rural communities they serve.
	The Home Office supports schemes such as Farm Watch and Countryside Watch, which are now operating across England and Wales, allowing farmers and those living in rural communities to share practical advice on crime prevention in order to look after their vehicles, property, families and animals.

Antisocial Behaviour Orders

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many anti-social behaviour orders have been  (a) issued and  (b) breached in each criminal justice system area since 31 December 2005.

Alan Campbell: The answer is given in the following table.
	
		
			  The number of antisocial behaviour orders issued in 2006 and the number proven in court to have been breached( 1)  in 2006, by Criminal Justice System Area 
			  CJS area  Number of ASBOs issued  Number of ASBOs breached( 3) 
			 Avon and Somerset 34 18 
			 Bedfordshire 31 9 
			 Cambridgeshire 31 15 
			 Cheshire 43 29 
			 Cleveland 80 39 
			 Cumbria 31 30 
			 Derbyshire 41 26 
			 Devon and Cornwall 46 28 
			 Dorset 15 14 
			 Durham 26 21 
			 Dyfed Powys 8 10 
			 Essex 32 35 
			 Gloucestershire 21 12 
			 Greater London 359 213 
			 Greater Manchester 225 203 
			 Gwent 49 17 
			 Hampshire 66 67 
			 Hertfordshire 35 30 
			 Humberside 115 70 
			 Kent(2) 29 9 
			 Lancashire 115 78 
			 Leicestershire 42 16 
			 Lincolnshire 17 6 
			 Merseyside 94 51 
			 Norfolk 27 22 
			 North Wales 87 51 
			 North Yorkshire 27 28 
			 Northamptonshire(2) 13 0 
			 Northumbria 70 22 
			 Nottinghamshire 70 66 
			 South Wales 54 30 
			 South Yorkshire 83 53 
			 Staffordshire 35 22 
			 Suffolk 35 23 
			 Surrey 26 27 
			 Sussex 73 52 
			 Thames Valley 44 33 
			 Warwickshire 27 16 
			 West Mercia 40 34 
			 West Midlands 189 109 
			 West Yorkshire 217 157 
			 Wiltshire 4 10 
			
			 England and Wales 2,706 1,801 
			 (1) ASBOs may be issued in one area and breached in another. Breaches are counted in this table by area of issue. ASBOs may be issued in one year and breached in another. Some of the breaches counted in the table will be associated with ASBOs issued prior to 2006. It is therefore not possible to compute breach rates from the figures presented in this table. (2) Breach data from the magistrates court administrative systems in Kent and Northamptonshire are known to have been under-reported. (3) Covers ASBOs issued in years prior to 2006 as well as those issued in that year.  Note: Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.  Sources: (ASBOs breached): OCJR Court Proceedings Database. (ASBOs issued): as reported to the Home Office by the Court Service.

Antisocial Behaviour: Crosby

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of anti-social behaviour orders in reducing anti-social behaviour in Crosby constituency.

Alan Campbell: Antisocial behaviour orders are one of many powerful tools we created to tackle antisocial behaviour. Three independent reports including the Home Affairs Select Committee report (2005), the Audit Commission report (May 2006) and the NAO report (December 2006) confirmed that they work.
	Sefton antisocial behaviour unit uses the full range of interventions that deal with both prevention and enforcement in that they engage, educate and promote awareness among young people; engage with residents and tackle antisocial behaviour in families throughout the borough of Sefton, which includes Crosby. It operates the policy advocated by Home Office Guidance that the appropriate intervention should be used in the right way at the right time and incrementally. This means that a low-level intervention such as a warning letter or antisocial behaviour contract would be used before an ASBO unless the behaviour is sufficiently serious to warrant it.

British Crime Survey

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the technical report relating to the 2007-08 British Crime Survey will be published.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 6 November 2008
	The 2007-08 British crime survey technical report can be found on the following webpage on the Home Office website:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/bcs-methodological.html

Community Policing

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which police forces have expressed an interest in taking part in the pilots of the community safety participatory budgets referred to in the Policing Green Paper.

Vernon Coaker: The Home Office has been working with Communities and Local Government and the Participatory Budgeting Unit to establish a set of criteria for the community safety participatory budgeting pilots. A number of practitioners from police forces, police authorities and local authorities have been assisting this process. The criteria are currently being finalised and the Home Office will shortly invite formal expressions of interest in running pilots.

Community Policing

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which local authority areas will receive funding from her Department under the community crime fighters scheme.

Alan Campbell: Funding for community crime fighters is not being allocated directly to local authorities. Training, funded by the Home Office, will be offered to around 3,600 people who are already involved with local services, such as tenants and residents groups, neighbourhood watch members and those working with neighbourhood policing teams.

Community Policing

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what funding she has allocated to the community crime fighter scheme; and over what time-frame.

Alan Campbell: Total funding of 5 million has been allocated to the community crime fighters scheme to cover the period 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11.

Community Policing

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what role she proposes for local authorities in the proposed community crime fighters scheme.

Alan Campbell: Training will be offered to around 3,600 people who are already involved with local services, such as tenants and residents groups, neighbourhood watch members and those working with neighbourhood policing teams. Local authorities will have an important role, working with the police and other partners, to help identify those who are suitable for the training and to work with them once they have received it.

Crime

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) vehicle thefts,  (b) domestic burglaries and  (c) violent crimes there were in each of the last 17 years.

Alan Campbell: The British Crime Survey (BCS) is the best guide to long term trends in vehicle theft, domestic burglary and violent crime in England and Wales. Prior to 2001-02 the survey ran periodically and estimates are available for only selected years.
	These figures are published annually in the Home Office statistical bulletin Crime in England and Wales, a copy of which is available in the House of Commons Library. These estimates are also shown in Table 1.
	
		
			  Table 1: BCS incidents of crime from 1981 to 2007-08 
			   1981  1991  1995  1997  2001-02 ints  2002-03 ints  2004-05 ints  2005-06 ints  2006-07 ints  2007-08 ints 
			  Property crime  Number of incidents (thousand) 
			 Burglary1 749 1,380 1,770 1,621 969 973 756 733 726 729 
			 With entry 474 869 998 852 552 561 469 440 425 435 
			 Attempts 276 511 772 768 416 412 287 293 301 294 
			 With loss 373 712 791 651 396 407 327 315 310 318 
			 No loss (including attempts) 376 668 979 970 573 566 429 418 417 411 
			 Vehicle-related theft 1,751 3,845 4,350 3,511 2,494 2,365 1,886 1,731 1,689 1,497 
			 Theft from vehicle 1,286 2,424 2,544 2,200 1,496 1,425 1,210 1,121 1,129 994 
			 Theft of vehicles 285 522 510 378 316 278 214 185 176 161 
			 Attempts of and from 179 899 1,297 933 683 662 462 425 384 342 
			 Unweighted base-household crime 10,905 10,059 16,310 14,900 32,720 36,395 44,973 47,610 47,027 46,765 
			  Violence   
			 All BCS violence(2) 2,074 2,556 4,176 3,593 2,728 2,714 2,320 2,349 2,471 2,164 
			 Wounding 508 624 914 804 648 709 577 547 578 467 
			 Assault with minor injury 609 784 1,356 1,198 709 623 629 572 571 481 
			 Assault with no injury 793 966 1,567 1,257 1,015 1,079 860 918 1,002 903 
			 Robbery 164 182 339 334 356 303 255 311 320 313 
			 Violence with injury 1,194 1,441 2,408 2,184 1,497 1,441 1,300 1,227 1,270 1,042 
			 Violence with no injury 881 1,115 1,768 1,409 1,231 1,273 1,020 1,121 1,201 1,122 
			 Domestic violence 292 534(3) 989 814 626 506 401 357 407 342 
			 Acquaintance 774 1.043(3) 1,816 1,642 862 949 828 817 845 765 
			 Stranger 844 797(3) 1,004 784 883 956 836 863 894 744 
			 Mugging (robbery and snatch theft) 250 259(3) 419 417 430 391 347 382 392 391 
			 Unweighted base-personal crime 10,905 10,059 16,337 14,937 32,787 36,450 45,069 47,729 47,138 46,903 
			 (1) Burglary with entry plus attempted burglary add up to total burglary. Burglary with loss plus burglary with no loss (including attempts) also add up to total burglary. (2) All BCS violence includes wounding, assault with minor injury, assault with no injury and robbery. Mugging includes robbery and snatch theft. For more information see the glossary. (3) The 1991 estimates for domestic, acquaintance and stranger violence and mugging were calculated based on the estimate for all BCS violence. Estimates for these individual categories could not be calculated using their individual incidence rates because the data used for calculating these rates were not collected for that year.  Note:  For household crimes the 2007-08 numbers are derived by multiplying offence rates (incidence rates) by 23,607,316 households in England and Wales. For personal crimes the 2007-08 numbers are derived by multiplying incidence rates by 43,859,000 adults in England and Wales.

Crime: Crosby

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what funding her Department has provided to  (a) victim support and  (b) neighbourhood watch schemes in Crosby constituency in the last 10 years.

Alan Campbell: Victim Support is an independent charity and is the main provider of services to victims and witnesses across England and Wales. In 2003, the Government increased the core grant for Victim Support to 30 million, and has maintained annual funding at that level. Victim Support has received a further 12.6 million from government (5.6 million in 2007-08 and 7 million this financial year) to deliver enhanced services to victims.
	Victim Support in Merseyside received 1,134,000 as part of the national grant to Victim Support in this financial year. This covers the Victim Support community service (including additional funds for Victim Support Plus) and grants to the Witness Service, which provides support to witnesses giving evidence in criminal trials at both Crown and magistrates courts.
	The Home Office directly meets the costs of providing public liability insurance for all police-registered Neighbourhood Watch schemes. Funding for local partners and statutory agencies to work together to tackle crime, drugs, and anti-social behaviour in their areas is provided to local authorities through the area-based grant. The Home Office does not keep detailed records giving a breakdown of payments to local schemes.

Criminal Records Bureau: Appeals

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people contested details held on record by the Criminal Records Bureau in each of the last five years; and how many of these disputes were upheld.

Jacqui Smith: The Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) do not hold criminal records but do release information held on police records and other data sources.
	The total number of disclosures where the details released by the CRB were contested by the applicant in the last five years and the total number of these that were subsequently upheld is detailed in the following table. These are referred to within the disclosure process as disputes and the CRB has procedures in place to allow an applicant to dispute the information provided.
	
		
			   2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			 Total number of disputes 1,739 2,265 2,675 3,077 4,931 
			 Total number of upheld disputes 1,739 2,265 2,669 2,797 2,785 
			 Total number of disclosures issued 2,284,688 2,430,937 2,770,265 3,277,957 3,323,251 
		
	
	The CRB enhanced its recording of disputes during 2005-06. Prior to this, the CRB did not hold figures for disputes not upheld.
	Information released on a disclosure can be disputed for a number of reasons including the inclusion of locally held non-conviction information which the applicant believes to be inaccurate or misleading; situations where an applicant has had their identity stolen; or the inclusion of data which an applicant was unaware would appear on the disclosure.

Departmental Data Protection

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether confidential or personal information has been compromised through the loss of property from her Department since 1997.

Phil Woolas: Except in exceptional cases, when it is in the public interest, it has been the policy of successive Governments not to comment on breaches of security. However, following the publication of the Data Handling Procedures in Government: Interim Progress Report on 17 December 2007,  Official Report, column 98WS, all Departments will cover information assurance issues in their annual reports.

Departmental Written Questions

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what the average time taken by her Department has been to answer ordinary Parliamentary written questions in the Parliamentary session to date;
	(2)  how many ordinary Parliamentary written questions were tabled to her Department in  (a) March 2008 and  (b) April 2008; and how many such questions remain unanswered;
	(3)  how many members of staff are employed by her Department to support Ministers in answering Parliamentary written questions.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 27 October 2008
	The information requested is in the following tables.
	
		
			   Number 
			 Normal written questions received(1) 3,891 
			 Target sitting days to answer 5 
			 Average sitting days to answer 8 
		
	
	
		
			   March 2008  April 2008 
			 Normal written questions received (Number) 487 442 
			 Questions outstanding(1) (Number) 6 8 
			 Percentage of received questions outstanding 1.2 1.8 
			 (1) To 13 November 2008. 
		
	
	There are four full-time equivalent posts in the Home Office parliamentary unit dedicated solely to supporting Ministers in answering parliamentary written questions. Many other officials contribute to answering questions, but this number can be quantified only at disproportionate cost.

Dispersal Orders: Enfield

Joan Ryan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how dispersal orders have been issued in the London Borough of Enfield in each year since 2003.

Alan Campbell: The number of dispersal orders issued in Enfield since 2003 is as follows:
	
		
			   Number 
			 2004 4 
			 2005 4 
			 2006 1 
			 2007 3 
			 2008 6

Driving Under Influence: Drugs

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when her Department plans to give type approval for a device for use in testing a driver for the presence of a drug in his body under Section 6 of the Road Traffic Act 1988, as amended.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 18 November 2008
	Before approving such a device, the Secretary of State must be wholly satisfied that it will be reliable in operational use and suitable for the purposes of criminal law enforcement. This will be ensured by requiring the device to be compliant with the necessarily rigorous, detailed and precise specification that is currently being developed. How soon a device might be approved will depend on how soon manufacturers present a device which they claim is compliant, how that device performs in tests and how quickly manufacturers then make any necessary adjustments.

Driving Under Influence: Drugs

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were convicted of driving while unfit through use of a drug in the last year for which figures are available.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 18 November 2008
	Information provided by the Ministry of Justice shows that in 2006 (latest available) there were 92,671 convictions for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Data for 2007 are due to be published at the end of November 2008.
	The data cover both drink and drugs offences combined, as volumes of convictions and custodial sentences for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs cannot be accurately established.

Driving Under Influence: Hertfordshire

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offences of  (a) drug and  (b) drink driving were recorded in (i) Hemel Hempstead and (ii) Hertfordshire in each year since 1997.

Alan Campbell: Offences of driving while unfit through drugs or drink are summary offences and do not feature in the recorded crime statistics collected by the Home Office.
	The Home Office does collect data on recorded offences of 'Causing death by dangerous or careless driving (including while under the influence of drink or drugs)'. However, it is not possible to determine from the information held centrally which, if any, of these offences were committed while the offender was under the influence.
	The available information for the above offence is given in the following table. Hemel Hempstead comes within the Dacorum local authority area. Data for this offence have only been collected at local authority area level since 2000-01.
	
		
			  Recorded offences of causing death by dangerous or careless driving (including while under the influence of drink or drugs) 
			   Dacorum local authority area  Hertfordshire 
			 1997 n/a 2 
			 1998-99 n/a 6 
			 1999-2000 n/a 5 
			 2000-01 0 4 
			 2001-02 0 12 
			 2002-03 4 12 
			 2003-04 0 6 
			 2004-05 2 13 
			 2005-06 0 4 
			 2006-07 0 11 
			 2007-08 0 13 
			 n/a = Not applicable

Driving Under Influence: Police

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police officers in England and Wales were convicted of drink driving offences in each of the last three years.

Vernon Coaker: The information requested is not available.
	Information is not collected centrally on the occupation of offenders unless specific to the offence legislation.

Dungavel Detention Centre

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average length of detention period in Dungavel Detention Centre of  (a) a family and  (b) an individual, aged (i) under 18, (ii) under 16 and (iii) under 10 years old in each of the last three years.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 3 November 2008
	 The average length of detention for a family in Dungavel House has remained at three days for 2006, 2007 and up until September for 2008.
	The average length of detention for single detainees was 17 days in 2006, 23 days in 2007 and 27 days up until September 2008.
	We do not have the data available in relation to age groups and to provide them would be at disproportionate cost.

Electronic Surveillance: Databases

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 30 October 2008,  Official Report, column 1251W, on electronic surveillance: databases, whether local authorities will have access to mobile telephone geodata.

Vernon Coaker: No. Directive 2006/24/EC will not change the kinds of data that local authorities are permitted to access under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000.

Electronic Surveillance: Databases

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 30 October 2008,  Official Report, column 1251W, on electronic surveillance: databases, whether local authorities will have access to communications data retained by internet service providers.

Vernon Coaker: Local authority access to communications data retained by internet service providers will be on the same basis as their access to communications data retained by any other communications service provider. That is they will continue under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 to have access to service use and subscriber data, but not traffic data, the class of communications data that would indicate specific areas of internet interest or activity.

Entry Clearances: Kyrgyzstan

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  when the applications for visas for the Kyrgyzstan musicians and performers invited to perform in the UK in November 2008 were received at the UK Embassy in Astana; when the applications were processed; when the applications were refused; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  for what reasons the musicians and performers invited to the UK by the Ambassador of Kyrgyzstan were denied visas to perform in the UK in November 2008; and if she will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: The applications have not been refused and are in fact ready to be issued pending receipt of results checks. However, I regret that this is obviously too late for the event in which they were originally due to perform. I can only add my apologies to those which have already been extended to the Kyrgyz ambassador in London by colleagues in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for the disruption this caused to the event he planned in November.
	The office in Almaty is working hard with engineers to rectify the problems as quickly as possible. UKBA hoped to resume a fully effective service in Almaty by 14 November.

Extradition: EU Countries

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many European arrest warrants for  (a) British citizens and  (b) non-British citizens her Department has issued to other EU member states; and how many people have been extradited to the UK under such warrants in each year since they came into force, broken down by (i) offence and (ii) member state to which the warrant was issued;
	(2)  how many European arrest warrants for  (a) British citizens and  (b) non-British citizens have been received from other EU member states; and how many people have been extradited under such warrants in each year since they came into force, broken down by (i) offence and (ii) member state of destination.

Jacqui Smith: The Serious Organised Crime Agency is the designated central authority for the receipt and transmission of European Arrest Warrants in the UK. There is no Government involvement in the operation of the EAW. The following tables, provided by SOCA, give figures for the following:
	(a) Number of persons extradited to EU member states under the EAW regime (Part 1 warrants) by the UK broken down by year and by country.
	(b) Number of subjects surrendered to the UK by EU member states (Part 3 warrants) broken down by year and by country.
	(c) EAWs received by the UK from other EU member states broken down by year and EAWs issued to other EU member states by the UK, broken down by year.
	All figures for this year are January to September 2008.
	It is not possible from current systems to provide data broken down into British and non-British nationals, nor into type of offence. SOCA is putting in place a new database to hold this information
	Warrants issued by the UK for one individual may be sent to more than one member state. The UK receives a large number of warrants from other member states. To break down the figures in the third table by originating state would incur disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Extradited from the UK 
			  Surrenders 
			  Part one EAW  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008  Total 
			 Austria   2   2 
			 Belgium 3 8 1 5 4 21 
			 Bulgaria 1 1 
			 Cyprus 1 1 
			 Czech Republic17 30 47 
			 Denmark  3  3  6 
			 Finland 1 2 1 1  5 
			 France 1 4 15 8 11 39 
			 Germany  8 16 19 13 56 
			 Greece   2 1  3 
			 Hungary   3 1 7 11 
			 Ireland 4 11 20 23 17 75 
			 Italy   5 9 2 16 
			 Latvia   2 7 9 18 
			 Lithuania 3 25 48 62 36 174 
			 Malta1  1 
			 Netherlands 3 3 2 11 4 23 
			 Poland  4 20 136 186 346 
			 Portugal 5 3 2 3 2 15 
			 Romania2 11 13 
			 Slovak Republic   4 4 1 9 
			 Slovenia 1 1 
			 Spain 1 3 4 6 13 27 
			 Sweden 2 1 4 1 2 10 
			 Total 23 75 151 320 351  
		
	
	
		
			  Extradited to the UK 
			  Surrenders 
			  Part three EAW  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008  Total 
			 Austria  0 
			 Belgium 2 1 4 4 3 14 
			 Bulgaria1  1 
			 Cyprus  1 1   2 
			 Czech Republic   1 5 3 9 
			 Denmark   2  1 3 
			 Estonia   2   2 
			 Finland  0 
			 France 2 7 8 7 3 27 
			 Germany  6 4 4 3 17 
			 Gibraltar 1 1 
			 Greece 4  2 1  7 
			 Hungary1  1 
			 Ireland  4 22 24 24 74 
			 Italy  1 1  1 3 
			 Latvia  11 
			 Lithuania   2 2  4 
			 Luxembourg1  1 
			 Malta  0 
			 Netherlands 2 10 4 11 9 36 
			 Poland   2 4 6 12 
			 Portugal 2 1 2 1 4 10 
			 Romania1 1 2 
			 Slovak Republic1 2 3 
			 Slovenia  0 
			 Spain 12 29 18 28 17 104 
			 Sweden  11 
			 Total 24 62 75 96 78  
		
	
	
		
			  Number of EAWs issued to and by the UK since 1 January 2004 
			  Totals by year  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Part one EAW 1,865 5,986 3,329 2,534 2,428 
			 Part three EAW 96 131 75 185 172

Fingerprints

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost has been of police forces using handheld fingerprinting devices to date.

Vernon Coaker: The total cost so far met by police forces using hand held fingerprinting devices is 31,400.
	The project costs, including the provision centrally of the held-held fingerprint hardware, software, research and development, service and support to the end of 2007, the latest date for which figures are available, has been 3,350,000.

Fingerprints

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department from which budget the cost of paying for the use of handheld fingerprinting devices by police forces will be met.

Vernon Coaker: The anticipated benefits derived from the provision of the handheld fingerprinting devices beyond the current field trials mean that their costs, supporting infrastructure and back-office services should be self-financing. As such, these costs will be met from within existing police force budgets. Other associated costs, for example, procurement, training, and the promulgation of good practice, will be met by the National Policing Improvement Agency.

Fingerprints

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions she has had with the Association of Chief Police Officers on the issuing of new guidelines to take into account the use of handheld fingerprinting devices.

Vernon Coaker: The Association of Chief Police Officers is represented at board level on the current field trials and procurement activity for future handheld fingerprinting capabilities. These projects will develop the procurement, training, and the promulgation of good practice for the use of mobile fingerprint capabilities. Amendments to the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE), and the associated code D of its codes of practice, will govern the use of the fingerprint capability.

Fingerprints

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how the use of handheld fingerprinting devices will be monitored; and how the data so gathered will be recorded.

Vernon Coaker: The use of the handheld fingerprint capability will form part of the stop and search/stop and account processes. As such, data on its use will be captured and reported on as part of the overall data submitted by police forces to the Home Office on these activities.

Fingerprints

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the implications of the use of handheld fingerprinting devices for the recording of criminal records.

Vernon Coaker: No such assessment has been made as it is not intended that the devices should be used to capture fingerprints for use in the validation or recording of criminal records.

Fingerprints

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of whether handheld fingerprint devices are used in a consistent manner by rural and urban police forces.

Vernon Coaker: The use of handheld fingerprint devices is a matter for the chief constable of each police force and for the present time requires consent from the individual being sampled. Available data suggest that there is no difference in the use of the devices between police forces, given the nature of the deployment that it is supporting.
	The use of the handheld fingerprint capability will form part of the stop and search/stop and account processes. As such, data on its use will be captured and reported on as part of the overall data submitted by police forces to the Home Office on these activities.

Fingerprints: Airports

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reasons she would mandate airport operators to carry out compulsory biometric fingerprinting of UK domestic passengers.

Phil Woolas: The Government are considering using powers in paragraph 26(3) of schedule 2 of the Immigration Act 1971 to require operators of certain airports to verify the identity of travellers through biometrics such as fingerprints before boarding, where there is a mixing of domestic and international passengers in a common departure lounge and where this would be a proportionate measure to manage border security.
	The Government continue to work closely with airport operators on the measures required to maintain the security of the UK border and of air travel.

Fraud

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether her Department has prepared a Code of Practice for disclosure of information to prevent fraud under section 71 of the Serious Crimes Act 2007.

Alan Campbell: As required by section 71 of the Serious Crime Act 2007, the Home Office prepared a code of practice for public authorities disclosing information to a specified anti-fraud organisation for the purposes of preventing fraud. The code was laid before Parliament on 6 October.
	A copy of the code can be found on the Home Office Crime Reduction website:
	http://www.crimereduction.homeoffice.gov.uk/organisedcrime/organisedcrime07c.pdf

Human Trafficking

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) arrests and  (b) convictions there were for human trafficking offences in each of the last five years.

Jacqui Smith: A total of 860 people were arrested under the Operations Pentameter 1 and 2.
	Since the commencement of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 (which came into force on 1 May 2004) to date, there have been 90 convictions for trafficking for sexual exploitation. Details of convictions by year are as follows:
	
		
			   Number of convictions 
			 2004 3 
			 2005 21 
			 2006 32 
			 2007 23 
			 2008 11

Human Trafficking

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for how long victims of human trafficking may remain in the UK.

Jacqui Smith: There is no cap on how long a victim of human trafficking can remain in the UK. The length of stay is determined by the individual circumstances of the victim and is decided on a case by case basis.

Human Trafficking

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many convictions there were for human trafficking for the purpose of  (a) forced labour and  (b) sexual exploitation in each of the last five years.

Jacqui Smith: Since the commencement of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 (which came into force on 1 May 2004) to date, there have been 90 convictions for trafficking for sexual exploitation. Details of convictions by year are as follows:
	
		
			   Number 
			 2004 3 
			 2005 21 
			 2006 32 
			 2007 23 
			 2008 11 
		
	
	In respect of trafficking for forced labour there have been a total of four convictions to date all of which were secured in 2008.

Human Trafficking: Prostitution

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to raise awareness of sex trafficking; and if she will make a statement.

Alan Campbell: We have run a number of awareness campaigns with partners. Our approach focuses on the use of the UK Human Trafficking Centre 'Blue Blindfold' awareness campaign, which was launched in January 2008. This campaign has the key message that trafficking is in local communities in the UK and encourages the public to call Crimestoppers with any information. We have also run a targeted campaign aimed at the purchasers of sex about the level and nature of exploitation and trafficking involved in off street prostitution.
	All prevention material produced provides details of the bespoke Blue Blindfold websitewww.blueblindfold. co.uk, which contains information on indicators of trafficking and dispelling myths about trafficking for sexual exploitation as well as providing contact details for local groups who wish to access the prevention material.

Human Trafficking: Sentencing

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will bring forward proposals for a tariff of mandatory minimum sentences for human trafficking offences.

Jacqui Smith: No.
	Sentencing guidelines issued by the Sentencing Guidelines Council provide adequate advice on sentencing for human trafficking cases, including aggravating and mitigating factors that can inform the judicial decision.
	Courts are also guided by case law arising from Court of Appeal decisions on sentencing and the Attorney-General has the power to refer cases to the Court of Appeal where it is believed the sentence passed is unduly lenient.

Human Trafficking: Victim Support Schemes

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made towards introducing a 45-day minimum recovery period for all victims of trafficking, as set out in the UK Action Plan on Tackling Human Trafficking 2007.

Jacqui Smith: The 'Update to the UK Action Plan on Tackling Human Trafficking', published on 2 July, committed the Government to implement a 45-day reflection and recovery period before 1 April 2009. We are working with partners to finalise formal victim identification arrangements and the training associated with it and are on track to meet this deadline.

Identity Cards

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what proportion of respondents to each of the waves of the National Identity Scheme Tracking Research carried out to date said that they did not support the scheme because they were concerned that  (a) it would be an infringement of personal freedom,  (b) it would not work,  (c) it is a waste of money,  (d) personal data will be used without their permission and  (e) it could be open to abuse;
	(2)  what proportion of respondents to each of the waves of the National Identity Scheme Tracking Research carried out to date said they  (a) agreed strongly or slightly and  (b) disagreed strongly or slightly with the Government's plan to introduce the National Identity Scheme;
	(3)  when the next wave of National Identity Scheme Tracking Research will be carried out; and when she expects the results of this research to be published.

Jacqui Smith: The findings of the National Identity Scheme Tracking Research can be found on the Identity and Passport Service website at:
	http://www.ips.gov.uk/identity/publications-research.asp
	I would refer the hon. and learned Member to that website.
	The next wave of tracking research was being carried out at the end of October, the results of which will be published in December 2008.

Identity Cards: Contracts

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what contracts have yet to be awarded in relation to the identity card scheme; who has tendered for them; and what the value of each contract is expected to be.

Jacqui Smith: Currently there are three National Identity Scheme procurements being undertaken with the five 'Strategic Supplier Group' framework suppliers who were appointed following open procurement in June 2008. For each of these procurements, an initial shortlist process has either happened or is planned and was announced in September. Further to this, a separate procurement is being conducted for replacement of a current passport production contract on expiry. This was advertised in the  Official Journal of the EU in June 2008 and a shortlist of bidders from those expressing an interest was announced in September.
	For all contracts yet to be awarded, no values have been agreed as they are subject to competitive procurement. However, as part of the procurement process, Identity and Passport Service has shared a current view on costs with bidders. This is to inform discussions while balancing the need to retain competition. Figures are derived from those published in the cost report to Parliament required under the Identity Cards Act 2006 and have recently been amended to reflect updates to bidders as part of the procurement process. They are subject to further refinement and discussion throughout the procurement process, so should be treated as indicative only.
	
		
			  Contract  Capability  Bidders  Value, estimate ( million ) 
			 Application and Enrolment Replacement of existing contracts as they expire from 2010, for processing of passport applications and supporting IPS infrastructure CSC 350-450 
			  Development of new capabilities to improve and support future passport applications process IBM  
			  Development of capabilities to introduce biometric passports and for supporting identity card application processes Fujitsu  
			 
			 National Biometric Identity Service Replacement of existing UK Borders Agency biometric database storage and matching capability when contracts expire IBM 200-250 
			  Development of new biometric matching and storage capabilities for UK Borders Agency Thales  
			  Development of new biometric capabilities for biometric passports and for identity cards   
			 
			 Card Design and Production Capabilities to design and securely produce identity cards CSC 250-350 
			   EDS  
			   Fujitsu  
			   IBM  
			   Thales  
			 
			 Passport Design and Production Capabilities to design and securely produce passport documents, replacing existing arrangements when they expire in 2010 3M 700 
			   SP and SL  
			   De La  
			   Rue  
			   Gemalto  
			   Thales

Identity Cards: Contracts

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the  (a) value is of any penalty and cancellation clauses in the contracts awarded in relation to the identity card scheme and  (b) the expected value is in contracts relating to the identity cards scheme that have yet to be awarded.

Jacqui Smith: Contracts for the NIS using the 'Strategic Supplier Group' framework and for passports contain provisions for termination based on Office of Government Commerce guidance. These include terms for ending the contract for poor performance or where a decision is made to terminate early (for 'convenience'). For termination for convenience where between 12 and 18 months notice is given, a supplier may recover costs incurred to the point of termination and those associated with terminating the contract. Where less notice is given, in addition to costs incurred, some anticipated profit lost as a result of the decision to terminate early may be claimed. As these provisions are based on formulae dependent on when any decision is taken, work incurred to date and what elements of services are being terminated, no 'value' can be calculated.

Identity Cards: Finance

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what costs have been incurred to date in the planning and implementation of the identity card scheme.

Jacqui Smith: Between the financial years 2003-04 and 2005-06, 41.1 million was spent by the Home Office Identity Cards Programme in total.
	Since the merger of the Home Office Identity Cards Programme and the UK Passport Service to create the Identity and Passport Service on 1 April 2006, projects to deliver passports including facial images and fingerprints, identity cards and other improvements have been necessarily combined. As much of the technology and operational processes needed to implement identity cards is also required for the implementation of these new passports, this is the most cost-effective way to deliver these initiatives.
	Much of the work conducted by Identity and Passport Service cannot be categorised, both financially and operationally, as contributing towards either the introduction of passports with facial images and fingerprints or identity cards alone. The work is accounted for as future development projects which in the 2006-07 financial year amounted to 30.9 million. The costs accounted for as future development projects in the 2007-08 financial year were 61.7 million.
	The latest six monthly Identity Cards Scheme Cost Report, published on 6 May 2008, sets out those elements of the cost estimates that relate specifically to passports, those specific to identity cards and those that are common to both. The cost of registering individuals for passports and ID cards is included in common costs because the same technology infrastructure and business processes will be used. In many cases, the same application will result in the issue of both a passport and an identity card.
	The latest cost report may be found at:
	http://www.ips.gov.uk/identity/publications-legislative.asp
	I would refer the hon. Member to that report.

Identity Cards: Foreigners

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the  (a) effectiveness of the technology to be used from 25 November to obtain biometric fingerprints from juvenile foreign nationals over the age of six for the Identity Cards Scheme for Foreign Nationals and  (b) merits of obtaining biometric fingerprints from juvenile foreign nationals over the age of six; what advice she has received on the psychological effect of collecting biometric identifiers from juveniles over the age of six; and if she will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: The UKBA has many years of experience of taking fingerprints from children aged five and upwards without difficulty. For example, we issued 39,401 application registration cards (ARC) to children aged from five to 16 from 2002 to 2006, and we collected biometric data as part of the visa application process between September 2006 and the end of April 2007 from 5,679 children aged from five to 16.
	The benefits of taking children's fingerprints are wide-ranging from providing a more secure and reliable documentary evidence of a child's immigration status and identity to helping abate child trafficking, and fraudulent claims for public funds. In addition, it will allow the UK to comply with EU regulation 380/2008 (section 4b) which lays down a uniform format for residence permits for third country nationals.
	When evaluating the pilot scheme for the identity cards for foreign nationals, children followed the same quick, easy and clean process that they saw their parent follow and there was no evidence to suggest that children were adversely affected by the process. To date, we have successfully enrolled the biometrics of over 13,000 people.

Immigrants: Vetting

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what access her Department has to the results of Criminal Records Bureau checks carried out in other EU member states; what arrangements are in place to ensure that all EU migrants are subject to a Criminal Records Bureau check before commencing employment in the UK; and if she will make a statement.

Meg Hillier: There is no direct equivalent to the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) in other countries or EU member states. Each country operates its own arrangements for providing access to criminal record information and the CRB does not currently access overseas criminal records as part of its Disclosure Service.
	The Disclosure Service is only available for those positions and types of work included in the Exceptions Order (1975) to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. The standard and enhanced disclosure process includes checks against the Police National Computer (PNC) and, if applicable, a search against Section 142 of the Education Act 2002, the Protection of Children Act and Protection of Vulnerable Adults (PoCA and PoVA) lists. Enhanced disclosures also contain a further check conducted by police forces for any relevant non-conviction information. All individuals who have received a successful offer of employment for a role which brings them into contact with children or vulnerable adults are subject to these checks irrespective of an applicant's nationality or length of residence in the United Kingdom.
	The CRB introduced an overseas service in February 2003 to provide details and guidance to employers and individuals on how to obtain a certificate of good conduct or a copy of a person's own criminal record from those countries included in the overseas service.
	This information can be used in conjunction with the full range of pre-appointment checks to ensure that the prospective employee is suitable for the post. These pre-appointment checks are the responsibility of the employer and a CRB disclosure is only one part of that process. Full details of this service are available on the CRB website at:
	www.crb.gov.uk//overseas.
	Some countries also have arrangements enabling their citizens to obtain certificates of good conduct or extracts from any existing criminal record to show to prospective employers. These may be obtained once the prospective employees have arrived in the UK but it may be advisable for them to obtain the document before leaving their home country.

Immigration: Deportation

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 19 May 2008,  Official Report, columns 5-6WS, on the UK Border Agency detention estate that an immigration offender is removed from the United Kingdom every eight minutes, how many new arrivals refused entry to the UK at port are counted as removed immigration offenders.

Phil Woolas: Of the 63,140 removals from the UK in 2007 (which equates to one removal, on average, every eight minutes), 33,680 were persons refused entry at port and subsequently removed from the UK. The latter figure includes cases dealt with at juxtaposed controls, persons departing voluntarily after enforcement action had been initiated against them and removals which have been performed by Immigration Officers at ports using enforcement powers. Figures are rounded to the nearest five and are provisional.
	National Statistics on immigration and asylum are available from the Library of the House and the Home Office's Research, Development and Statistics website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html.

Immobilisation of Vehicles: Licensing

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether her Department's review of the regulation of companies involved in vehicle immobilisation on private land will include consideration of the proposal that the Security Industry Authority take responsibility for the level of fees charged in relation to vehicle immobilisation.

Alan Campbell: The Security Industry Authority (SIA) is undertaking a feasibility study of various options for the regulation of vehicle immobilisation companies who work on private land, which is expected to be completed by the end of December. This study is considering options relating to the fees charged in relation to vehicle immobilisation on private land.

Interception Modernisation Programme

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the  (a) set-up and  (b) annual running costs of the Interception Modernisation Programme database.

Vernon Coaker: The objective of the Interception Modernisation Programme (IMP) is to maintain the UK's Lawful Intercept and Communications Data capabilities in the changing communications environment. It is a cross-government programme, led by the Home Office, to ensure that our capability to lawfully intercept and exploit data when fighting crime and terrorism is not lost. It was established in response to the Prime Minister's National Security remit in 2006.
	As part of the Government's Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR 07) a central bid was made to HM Treasury on behalf of the security and intelligence agencies. Funding for IMP was included in this bid.
	The IMP will require a substantial level of investment which will need to tie in with the Government's three-year CSR periods. The scale of overall economic investment is very difficult to calculate because of the complexity of the project and wide ranging implementation solutions currently being considered.
	Given the commercial and national security sensitivities, the precise costs of the programme cannot be disclosed. Further detail on budgetary estimates for the IMP will however become available once the public consultation process (announced by the Home Secretary on 15 October) commences in the new year.

Members: Correspondence

David Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what proportion of replies to hon. Members on immigration cases were signed by a Minister in her Department in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the procedures are for deciding whether the reply is signed by a Minister or the Chief Executive of the UK Border Agency.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 26 June 2008
	In May 2008, 40.5 per cent. of the replies sent to hon. Members, that were originally sent to a Minister, were signed by a Minister.
	Letters written directly to the Home Secretary by Cabinet colleagues, Members of the shadow Cabinets and leaders of other political parties will receive a reply direct from the Home Secretary.
	Letters written to a Minister that ask for a meeting, are political or explicitly drawing the Minister's attention to an issue, will also receive a reply from a Minister. Members of the Privy Council will also receive a ministerial reply if they write to a Minister.
	The letters that do not fall into these categories are divided between the CEO (and deputy) of the Border Agency and Ministers for replying; with 80 per cent. going to the CEO (and deputy) and 20 per cent. to Ministers.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she will respond to the letter of 29 September from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. Z Mohiny.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 13 November 2008
	 I replied to my right hon. Friend's letter on 13 November 2008.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she will respond to the letter of 30 September from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mrs. Zara Gulshav.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 13 November 2008
	 I replied to my right hon. Friend's letter on 12 November 2008.

National Policing Improvement Agency: Finance

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the budget for the National Policing Improvement Agency will be in  (a) 2008-09,  (b) 2009-10 and (c) 2010-11.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 10 November 2008
	 The National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA) budget for resource and capital, as set out in the business plan 2008-11, is given in the following table.
	
		
			   million 
			   Resource  Capital 
			 2008-09 396.3 179.0 
			 2009-10 393.8 125.0 
			 2010-11 390.8 119.0 
		
	
	The 2008-09 budget has been delegated by the Home Office. The 2009-10 and 2010-11 budgets have not yet been formally delegated by the Home Office.
	Further information can be found in section 8 of the NPIA business plan 2008-11, which is available on the NPIA website at:
	http://www.npia.police.uk/en/7403.htm

Neighbourhood Policing Fund

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what the size of the Neighbourhood Policing Fund will be in  (a) 2008-09,  (b) 2009-10 and  (c) 2010-11;
	(2)  what the total funding by her Department for police community support officers in England and Wales will be in  (a) 2008-09,  (b) 2009-10 and  (c) 2010-11.

Jacqui Smith: From 1 April 2008, the Neighbourhood Policing Fund has included the grant for police community support officers. The police funding settlement announced on 6 December 2007 set out allocations for 2008-09 and provisionally for 2009-10 and 2010-11. The total figures for England and Wales are  (a) 324 million in 2008-09,  (b) 332 million in 2009-10 and  (c) 341 million in 2010-11.

Parenting Contracts

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many parenting contracts have been issued to parents of young people repeatedly found drinking in public.

Jacqui Smith: Data on parenting contracts are not collected by the Home Office as they are voluntary agreements and therefore are not suitable for central data collection.

Police Cautions

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) cautions,  (b) on-the-spot fines and  (c) formal warnings were issued by each police force in each of the last 10 years.

Alan Campbell: Information provided by the Ministry of Justice showing the number of offenders cautioned is given in table 1. The number of penalty notices for disorder (on-the-spot fines) issued from 2004 (commencement of the scheme) to 2006 is given in table 2. Data for 2007 in relation to both cautions and penalty notices for disorder are due to be published at the end of November 2008.
	Police forces can also issue 'on the spot fines' or fixed penalty notices (FPNs) for various motoring offences. Information on the number of FPNs issued, broken down by police force area for the years 1997 to 2007 are published in table 20(a) of the Home Office publication 'Offences Relating to Motor Vehicles'. Copies are available in the House Library.
	The only formal warning statistics that are collected centrally are cannabis warnings. Police forces have been able to issue a formal warning for possession of cannabis, known as a cannabis warning, since 1 April 2004. The available data are given in table 3. Figures for 2004-05 cannot be shown at the police force area level. For this period, there were an estimated 39,256 cannabis warnings in England and Wales.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of offenders cautioned( 1) , by police force area, England and Wales 1997 to 2006( 2,3) 
			  Police force area  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Avon and Somerset 3,773 4,534 5,197 4,764 4,351 4,286 4,615 5,075 6,107 8,332 
			 Bedfordshire 2,940 2,789 2,833 2,265 3,112 2,628 2,827 3,080 3,455 3,539 
			 Cambridgeshire 2,477 2,621 2,569 2,308 2,207 2.114 2,063 2,618 3,985 4,233 
			 Cheshire 4,048 4,587 3,592 3,111 2,780 2,085 3,051 3,268 4,572 5,318 
			 City of London 1,146 751 709 559 902 1,083 974 605 807 850 
			 Cleveland 7,242 5,583 4,321 3,267 3,087 3,020 3,256 3,490 3,617 5,672 
			 Cumbria 2,902 3,015 3,032 2,337 2,505 2,392 2,615 2,753 2,652 2,956 
			 Derbyshire 3,832 3,532 3,301 2,917 3,161 2,732 2,794 3,371 4,644 4,874 
			 Devon and Cornwall 8,042 7,047 7,226 7,283 7,177 7,224 7,870 6,951 7,175 8,905 
			 Dorset 964 1,741 1,787 1,926 1,787 1,709 1,789 3,114 3,115 4,024 
			 Durham 2,014 2,089 2,393 2,349 2,424 2,681 2,628 2,160 3,137 4,330 
			 Essex 6,717 6,064 5,296 4,690 4,640 4,330 4,277 4,799 7,530 11,763 
			 Gloucestershire 2,331 2,897 2,754 2,848 2,828 2,815 2,590 2,696 3,822 3,553 
			 Greater Manchester 16,297 19,716 16,142 12,389 11,181 9,774 11,063 12,778 13,184 13,820 
			 Hampshire 7,592 6,424 7,478 7,014 7,436 6,765 7,587 8,747 9,180 8,962 
			 Hertfordshire 3,057 2,867 2,779 3,182 3,237 3,096 3,378 3,826 4,006 6,379 
			 Humberside 3,968 4,509 3,756 3,533 3,250 2,632 2,874 4,118 5,386 5,863 
			 Kent 7,129 8,570 8,533 7,655 7,339 6,479 8,252 10,013 10,166 11,541 
			 Lancashire 9,333 8,909 7,355 6,777 7,189 6,515 8,205 10,229 10,345 13,212 
			 Leicestershire 3,155 3,409 3,202 2,512 2,149 804 2,564 3,898 5,029 6,045 
			 Lincolnshire 2,566 2,425 1,957 1,440 1,799 2,101 2,063 2,177 3,672 4,264 
			 Merseyside 13,763 14,205 12,159 8,216 6,142 6,331 6,165 6,388 3,785 4,030 
			 Metropolitan Police 53,632 57,969 46,239 36,758 31,337 32,088 31,324 31,833 35,152 43,844 
			 Norfolk 4,460 3,345 2,809 2,773 2,302 2,345 2,314 2,774 3,013 4,471 
			 North Yorkshire 1,852 2,238 2,531 2,461 2,590 2,646 2,722 2,740 2,405 2,337 
			 Northamptonshire 2,352 3,176 3,021 3,431 3,679 3,560 2,716 2,591 3,237 4,714 
			 Northumbria 17,586 14,620 14,505 14,165 14,065 15,694 16,779 16,246 16,628 16,389 
			 Nottinghamshire 5,966 5,808 5,323 5,142 5,118 3,862 4,814 4,868 7,640 9,872 
			 South Yorkshire 4,965 5,306 6,217 3,950 4,304 4,102 4,839 4,891 9,506 12,344 
			 Staffordshire 5,905 4,958 4,105 5,628 5,455 6,124 5,585 4,616 6,496 8,098 
			 Suffolk 3,188 3,345 2,695 3,201 3,459 3,336 3,636 3,484 3,670 4,093 
			 Surrey 2,861 3,514 3,914 3,213 4,097 3,675 4,793 5,435 5,654 5,265 
			 Sussex 6,640 5,762 6,393 6,670 7,666 8,151 8,162 8,709 9,146 9,327 
			 Thames Valley 3,705 3,209 4,626 6,790 5,157 6,149 6,534 8,243 13,337 13,410 
			 Warwickshire 2,160 2,143 2,061 1,785 2,161 2,024 2,277 1,936 2,920 3,610 
			 West Mercia 5,866 5,836 5,297 5,380 6,385 6,357 6,251 6,658 7,747 8,110 
			 West Midlands 15,836 17,093 17,138 15,575 14,517 15,078 15,143 13,751 17,706 20,774 
			 West Yorkshire 8,875 9,676 9,923 9,633 9,071 10,073 11,277 14,959 17,904 20,314 
			 Wiltshire 2,575 2,497 2,678 2,853 2,115 1,695 2,347 1,985 2,046 2,081 
			
			  England 263,712 268,779 247,846 222,750 214,161 210,555 225,013 241,873 283,578 331,518 
			
			 Dyfed-Powys 3,109 3,452 3,313 3,185 3,495 3,761 4,491 3,170 3,973 5,179 
			 Gwent 5,329 5,780 5,502 4,529 4,258 3,803 3,666 1,456 2,553 5,649 
			 North Wales 3,074 3,544 3,619 3,124 3,120 3,559 3,299 3,237 2,706 2,842 
			 South Wales 6,869 6,339 5,852 5,399 4,826 3,680 5,337 6,032 6,135 4,789 
			
			  Wales 18,381 19,115 18,286 16,237 15,699 14,803 16,793 13,895 15,367 18,459 
			
			  Total England and Wales 282,093 287,894 266,132 238,987 229,860 225,358 241,806 255,768 298,945 349,977 
			 (1) From 1 June 2000 the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 came into force nationally and removed the use of cautions for persons under 18 and replaced them with reprimands and final warnings. These figures have been included in the totals. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) The cautions statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been cautioned for two or more offences at the same time the principal offence is the more serious offence. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number of penalty notices for disorder issued to recipients of all ages, by police force area, all offences, England and Wales 2004 to 2006( 1) 
			  Police force area  2004( 2)  2005  2006 
			 Avon and Somerset 508 3,244 3,951 
			 Bedfordshire 503 1,239 1,645 
			 British Transport police n/a n/a 3,058 
			 Cambridgeshire 359 1,046 1,518 
			 Cheshire 972 2,387 2,283 
			 City of London 60 219 316 
			 Cleveland 559 2,806 3,570 
			 Cumbria 578 1,220 1,693 
			 Derbyshire 656 1,593 2,583 
			 Devon and Cornwall 1,889 5,134 7,022 
			 Dorset 516 1,381 2,309 
			 Durham 597 1,149 1,591 
			 Essex 2,802 4,454 4,461 
			 Gloucestershire 473 1,721 3,164 
			 Greater Manchester 2,253 7,256 10,881 
			 Hampshire 2,116 3,658 4,909 
			 Hertfordshire 412 1,296 5,615 
			 Humberside 1,596 3,265 5,490 
			 Kent 767 5,032 7,080 
			 Lancashire 5,077 10,222 12,479 
			 Leicestershire 756 1,909 2,426 
			 Lincolnshire 544 2,373 2,049 
			 Merseyside 3,929 11,937 11,709 
			 Metropolitan 12,758 18,047 20,856 
			 Norfolk 475 676 1,332 
			 North Yorkshire 1,078 1,596 2,395 
			 Northamptonshire 570 1,403 2,541 
			 Northumbria 211 2,147 6,418 
			 Nottinghamshire 1,060 2,119 2,304 
			 South Yorkshire 2,098 3,710 6,185 
			 Staffordshire 1,450 2,169 3,261 
			 Suffolk 472 901 1,472 
			 Surrey 203 641 2,844 
			 Sussex 1,509 4,193 5,268 
			 Thames Valley 1,038 5,795 6,789 
			 Warwickshire 481 933 1,049 
			 West Mercia 275 1,774 3,533 
			 West Midlands 4,773 7,320 8,015 
			 West Yorkshire 4,277 9,217 8,930 
			 Wiltshire 610 1,080 1,246 
			 
			  England 61,260 138,262 186,240 
			 
			 Dyfed Powys 459 1,214 1,393 
			 Gwent 424 1,511 2,050 
			 North Wales 1,255 3,792 6,167 
			 South Wales 241 1,702 5,347 
			 
			  Wales 2,379 8,219 14,957 
			 
			  England and Wales 63,639 146,481 201,197 
			 n/a = Not applicable. The British Transport police started issuing PNDs on 1 March 2006. (1) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (2) First year of PND scheme. Fully rolled out to all forces on 1 April 2004. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Number of cannabis warnings issued by police force area and year 2005-06 to 2007-08( 1,2) 
			  Police force area  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			 Avon and Somerset 2,578 3,600 2,554 
			 Bedfordshire 643 324 289 
			 British Transport police 203 430 1,707 
			 Cambridgeshire 492 956 1,594 
			 Cheshire 393 532 757 
			 City of London 682 373 436 
			 Cleveland 392 331 686 
			 Cumbria 219 231 218 
			 Derbyshire 513 497 520 
			 Devon and Cornwall 1,532 1,473 1,380 
			 Dorset 340 348 393 
			 Durham 207 257 256 
			 Essex 697 722 1,348 
			 Gloucestershire 395 419 459 
			 Greater Manchester 3,235 4,943 5,311 
			 Hampshire 1,113 1,477 2,260 
			 Hertfordshire 488 1,394 1,485 
			 Humberside 149 533 895 
			 Kent 497 652 846 
			 Lancashire 237 210 528 
			 Leicestershire 978 1,555 1,967 
			 Lincolnshire 471 543 508 
			 Merseyside 8,561 7,204 7,229 
			 Metropolitan 21,040 30,554 46,986 
			 Norfolk 638 731 786 
			 North Yorkshire 654 554 702 
			 Northamptonshire 111 206 311 
			 Northumbria 155 1,419 1,311 
			 Nottinghamshire 855 1,077 1,210 
			 South Yorkshire 1,023 1,027 1,296 
			 Staffordshire 1,323 1,282 1,150 
			 Suffolk 64 573 599 
			 Surrey 482 754 993 
			 Sussex 1,350 1,971 2,447 
			 Thames Valley 1,883 2,431 2,753 
			 Warwickshire 419 650 399 
			 West Mercia 582 686 756 
			 West Midlands 3,451 2,852 2,286 
			 West Yorkshire 1,839 1,539 1,340 
			 Wiltshire 394 231 218 
			 
			  England 61,278 77,541 99,169 
			 
			 Dyfed Powys 799 887 882 
			 Gwent 396 646 757 
			 North Wales 793 971 985 
			 South Wales 536 1,266 2,414 
			 
			  Wales 2,524 3,770 5,038 
			 
			  England and Wales 63,802 81,311 104,207 
			 (1) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (2) Cannabis warnings cannot be shown at the police force area level for 2004-05. In this period, there were an estimated 39,256 cannabis warnings issued in England and Wales.

Police: Disciplinary Proceedings

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police disciplinary proceedings following internal investigations took place in each year since 2001.

Jacqui Smith: This information is no longer collected by the Home Office. The collation and publication of the statistics requested has been the responsibility of the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) since 1 April 2004, in accordance with the Police Reform Act 2002.
	The Home Office data are set out in the following table.
	
		
			  Most severe misconduct sanction imposed on each officer by category 
			  Misconduct Sanction  2000-01  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04 
			 Dismissal 41 24 44 33 
			 Requested to resign 84 73 71 62 
			 Reduction in rank 15 19 18 14 
			 Reduction in pay (disciplinary punishment) 7 3   
			 Fine 154 191 169 138 
			 Reprimand 86 88 58 42 
			 Caution 51 50 42 21 
			 Substantiated - no further action 4 8 7 14 
			 Total 442 456 409 324

Police: Manpower

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many serving police officers there were in  (a) North Yorkshire,  (b) York,  (c) Hambledon district and  (d) Ryedale district in each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: The available data for North Yorkshire police and all of its Basic Command Units (BCUs) are given in the following table. Police personnel statistics are not collected by district.
	
		
			  Police officer strength by Basic Command Unit as at 31 March in each of the given years( 1) 
			  North Yorkshire BCUs  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 North Yorkshire Central 422 410 438 426 402 
			 North Yorkshire Eastern 430 399 430 424 398 
			 North Yorkshire Western 412 404 430 433 421 
			 Central Services 269 347 356 387 361 
			   
			 North Yorkshire Police Force Total 1,534 1,560 1,653 1,670 1,581 
			 (1) These figures are based on full-time equivalents that have been rounded to the nearest whole number, due to rounding there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of constituent items. Figures include those officers on career breaks.

Police: Manpower

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many police officers per 100,000 population there were in North Yorkshire in each year since 1997;
	(2)  how many police officers there were in  (a) North Yorkshire and  (b) Yorkshire in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: The available data are given in the following tables.
	
		
			  Table 1: Police officer strength( 1)  (FTE)( 2)  by  police force as at 31 March 1997  to 31 March 2008 
			   As at 31 March: 
			  Police force  1997( 3)  1998  1999  2000  2001( 3)  2002  2003( 3)  2004( 3)  2005( 3)  2006( 3)  2007( 3)  2008( 3) 
			 North Yorkshire 1,338 1,367 1,337 1,283 1,305 1,417 1,444 1,529 1,543 1,636 1,654 1,560 
			 South Yorkshire 3,159 3,182 3,168 3,163 3,197 3,199 3,183 3,279 3,265 3,255 3,254 3,172 
			 West Yorkshire 5,209 5,155 4,982 4,822 4,815 4,889 5,029 5,275 5,631 5,644 5,655 5,744 
			 Yorkshire (combined) 9,705 9,704 9,487 9,268 9,317 9,505 9,656 10,083 10,439 10,535 10,563 10,475 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Police officers( 1)  (FTE)( 2)  per 100,000 of the population for by police force, as at 31 March 1997 to 31 March 2008 
			   As at 31 March: 
			  Police f orce  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004( 3)  2005( 3)  2006( 3)  2007( 3)  2008( 3) 
			 North Yorkshire 183 186 181 173 175 188 193 203 206 216 217 202 
			 (1) This table contains full-time equivalent figures that have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Because of rounding, there may be an apparent discrepancy between totals and the sums of the constituent items. (2) Full-time equivalent excludes those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave. (3) Comparable strength (excludes those on career breaks, or maternity/paternity leave). The Police Numbers Task Force (2001) recommended that a clear presentation was made of the numbers of staff employed by police forces including those seconded into the force and those on any type of long or short term absence. These new calculations were first used in 2003, and are not comparable with data prior to March 2003. The data from 2003 onwards used here are termed comparable because they have been calculated on the old basis to allow comparison.

Police: Training

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what training police officers are required to undertake on the issues of  (a) domestic violence,  (b) female genital mutilation,  (c) forced marriage,  (d) rape,  (e) stalking,  (f) human trafficking and  (g) honour-based violence.

Alan Campbell: The National Police Improvement Agency (NPIA) has developed modules for training domestic abuse which are used by the police service. All new recruits and civilian staff receive this which equates to two days training and incorporates child protection training.
	The modules are being currently being refreshed by the NPIA to incorporate female genital mutilation (FGM), stalking and harassment and honour-based violence (HBV).
	Some police forces have produced stand-alone training, for example, the Metropolitan Police Service Project Azore, which relates to specialist staff receiving training on FGM and Thames Valley police, South Wales and the North Eastern regional police forces who have produced training around HBV, FGM and trafficking for frontline staff, senior investigating officers (SIO), call handlers, and specialists. This training has been forwarded to the NPIA product design for assessment with a view to informing the national training.
	The specially trained officer development programme (STODP) was developed by the NPIA to develop the skills and competence of officers dealing with rape victims.
	The role profile and the programme itself was developed through wide consultation with practitioners in the police service and representatives from the following:
	Home Office
	Crown Prosecution Service
	Health Service
	Voluntary Sector
	Skills for Justice
	The programme consists of three stages:
	1. A knowledge acquisition stageconsisting of distance learning workbooks
	2. A skills development stageconsisting of a two week course.
	3. A workplace learning and assessment stagethrough a professional development portfolio.
	This programme was delivered to the police service through a number of regional roadshows conducted in November 2007.

Privacy

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has to carry out a privacy impact assessment on the provisions of the Communications Data Bill; and if she will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: On 15 October, I announced that we would be launching a consultation on how to maintain the ability of police and intelligence agencies to protect the public using communications data, in the face of the challenge of changing technology. This consultation will begin in the new year.
	I am clear that we need to consult widely with the public and all interested parties to set out the emerging problem, the important capability gaps that we need to address and to look at the possible solutions.

Protection: Religious Freedom

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals who have converted from Islam to other faiths have been placed on an at risk register by police forces in England and Wales following threats made to them as a result of their conversion.

Alan Campbell: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Security Guards: Licensing

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Security Industry Authority licence holders have had their licences revoked incorrectly following inaccurate information being provided by her Department on their right to work.

Alan Campbell: The Security Industry Authority's revocation process, which applied following right to work checks with the United Kingdom Border Agency on non-EEA SIA licence holders, incorporates a number of safeguards to ensure that licences are not revoked incorrectly. This includes written notification to the holder informing them that the SIA is minded to revoke their licence and allowing 21 days to respond with evidence of their right to work, during which the licence remains in force. Revocation follows if no such evidence is provided, but the holder retains the right of appeal through the courts for a further 21 days and a licence remains in force until the appeal process is completed.
	There have been instances where licence holders have not responded to requests for information from the SIA, had their licences revoked and subsequently demonstrated a valid right to work at appeal. The latest information available shows that there have been just over 250 such cases since 1 January 2008, or 3 per cent. of the approximately 8,100 cases where revocation ensued after a warning letter had been sent following the right to work checks on almost 40,000 non-EEA licence holders at the end of 2007.

Sex Establishments

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has to reclassify lap-dancing clubs as sex encounter establishments.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 13 November 2008
	We will be publishing proposals shortly.

Terrorism

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what use has been made of the powers to search domestic hereditaments for weapons of mass destruction under section 52 of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001.

Vernon Coaker: The Home Office does not collate or hold information on the use made of this power.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to answer question 195404 on routes to citizenship, tabled on 18 March.

Jacqui Smith: I replied to the hon. Member on 1 September 2008,  Official Report, column 1533W.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to answer question 195037, on security passes, tabled on 13 March 2008.

Jacqui Smith: I replied to the hon. Member on 14 October 2008,  Official Report, column 1073W.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

BBC: Standards

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will place in the Library a copy of the most recent report on the inspection of the British Broadcasting Corporation by the Office of the Surveillance Commissioner.

Andy Burnham: The report is a matter for the BBC.
	It is the view of the Chief Surveillance Commissioner that for public authorities to disclose the contents of his reports would prejudice the effective conduct of public affairs and the BBC does not therefore propose to place a copy of this report in the Library of the House.

Bed and Breakfast Accommodation

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent representations he has received from representatives of people running bed and breakfast establishments.

Barbara Follett: holding answer 6 November 2008
	 My predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Barking (Margaret Hodge) met my hon. Friend the Member for Gloucester (Mr. Dhanda) the former Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) on 21 July 2008 to discuss concerns raised by VisitBritain, on behalf of small accommodation providers about the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and its impact on their establishments.
	DCLG is working with stakeholders on providing guidance to accommodation providers which will help them understand what is required of them and give them practical advice. The industry, VisitBritain and my Department continue to work with DCLG on addressing this issue.

Churches: Theft

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what support English Heritage has given to churches on tackling increases in thefts of lead from church roofs.

Barbara Follett: English Heritage is extremely concerned about the theft of metals from churches. A substantial proportion of its grant aid over many years has been given to re-roof parish churches, usually in lead which is the most robust and appropriate material. English Heritage has recently published a guidance note on its website
	http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/upload/pdf/Advice_Note_on_Theft_of_Metal_Roof_Coverings_5_JS_.pdf
	which provides information and advice on ways to minimise the threat of theft and suggests sensible precautions that congregations can take.
	English Heritage scrutinises new methods of preventing theft when it is asked to do so. This work is undertaken by its national security adviser who tests for example, new devices and systems. English Heritage then disseminates findings on effective systems to all interested parties.

Community Development: Crosby

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent assessment he has made of  (a) the effectiveness of community sport and cultural activities funded by his Department in engaging young people most at risk of committing antisocial behaviour and  (b) the effectiveness of community sport and cultural activities funded in Crosby constituency in meeting their objectives.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Through our agencies we have a wide range of programmes that offer young people most at risk of committing antisocial behaviour the opportunity to participate more in sport and culture. These include the Kickz Programme, and the Department's Youth Mentoring Programme for media, music and sport which includes 'Your Hired!' and the 'Respect Athlete Mentoring Programme'.
	We have not undertaken a specific assessment of the effectiveness of such programmes in respect of engaging young people most at risk of committing antisocial behaviour, or the effectiveness of community sport and cultural activities in Crosby in particular.

Cultural Heritage

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many staff in his Department were employed to work on heritage issues in each year since 1997.

Barbara Follett: Such headcount information as is available is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Headcount 
			 2003-04 37 
			 2004-05 38 
			 2005-06 37 
			 2006-07 36 
			 2007-08 30 
		
	
	These figures represent the position at the end of each financial year.

Departmental Consultants

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many external consultants work for his Department.

Barbara Follett: From 1 April 2008 to date 10 external consultants have worked for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

Departmental Data Protection

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what procedures are in place in his Department to ensure that data are not lost; and what steps his Department takes to ensure that companies contracted to provide services for his Department take steps to prevent such losses.

Gerry Sutcliffe: My Department protects its information by complying with government security standards which are a mix of physical and logical controls.
	Staff have been reminded of their responsibility to protect and secure information and to not copy sensitive data to removable media unless it is absolutely necessary. If they do they have been reminded that it should be safeguarded as if it was a large amount of cash.
	Laptop hard drives are encrypted and only encrypted data sticks may carry departmental information.
	My Department uses the standard terms and conditions provided by the OGC in its contracts. It also includes the specific mandatory requirements set out in the Cabinet Office review of data handling in its invitation to tender documentation. Compliance with all security requirements is a compulsory element of tender evaluation.

Departmental Data Protection

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether the data shared between his Department and companies contracted to provide services for it is routinely encrypted.

Gerry Sutcliffe: My Department does not hold large amounts of sensitive data that need to be shared with suppliers. Payroll information is shared with a supplier and passes across a secure Government Secure Intranet and is not encrypted.

Departmental Land

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much surplus land  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies own; and what the (i) area and (ii) estimated monetary value of each site is.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Neither the Department for Culture, Media and Sport nor its agency The Royal Parks, own any surplus land.

Departmental Written Questions

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many Questions for written answer were tabled to his Department in Session  (a) 2002-03,  (b) 2003-04,  (c) 2004-05,  (d) 2005-06,  (e) 2006-07 and  (f) 2007-08 to date; and how many were (i) answered substantively and (ii) not answered on grounds of disproportionate cost.

Andy Burnham: The number of written questions tabled (and transferred) to DCMS is as follows
	
		
			   Number 
			 2002-03 1,492 
			 2003-04 1,389 
			 2004-05 6,73 
			 2005-06 3,080 
			 2006-07 (1)2,147 
			 2007-08 (1)2,375 
			 (1) Excludes figures for written questions answered by the Minister for the Olympics. Information obtained from the DCMS parliamentary questions database. 
		
	
	Information on how many written questions were answered substantively and not answered on grounds of disproportionate cost is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However all DCMS answers are a matter of public record and can be found in the  Official Report.

Gambling Commission: Standards

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will place in the Library a copy of the report on the inspection of the Gambling Commission by the Office of the Surveillance Commissioner.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The report is a matter for the Gambling Commission and the Commission considers that it is not in the public interest to make the document available in the public domain at this time.
	In the Commission's view, disclosing the scale and nature of the Commission's processes would, or would be likely to, compromise the Commission's ability to perform its statutory functions, which include investigating the commission of offences.

Government Art Collection

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 10 November 2008,  Official Report, column 817W, on the Government Art Collection, what the eight missing works of art are; when each was recorded as missing; what the monetary value of each is estimated to be; and how much has been spent to date on their recovery.

Barbara Follett: The information is as follows:
	 Horse Guards from the Old Entrance, Scotland Yard
	Print after Michael Angelo Rooker
	(GAC15039)
	Recorded as missing on 1 November 2007
	Estimated value: 400
	 Monument to Balance 4/30
	Print by Ernest DUNN
	(GACL90)
	Recorded as missing on 28 July 2008
	Estimated value: 120
	 The Wording of Police Charges 37/150 1970
	 Plague 37/150 1970
	(GAC12775)
	(GAC12754)
	Prints by R.B. KITAJ
	Recorded as missing on 30 July 2008
	Estimated value: 500 each
	 Yellow Square plus Quarter Blue 30/72 1972
	Print by William SCOTT
	(GAC11397)
	Recorded as missing on 2 September 2008
	Estimated value: 4,000
	 Mudbanks A/P 1978
	Print by Julian Trevelyan
	(GAC15018)
	Recorded as missing on 2 September 2008
	Estimated value: 500
	 Calypso 36/50
	Print by Julian TREVELYAN
	(GACL608)
	Recorded as missing on 2 September 2008
	Estimated value: 500
	 Breeze I 40/50 1967
	Print by John Brunsdon
	(GACL908)
	Recorded as missing on 2 September 2008
	Estimated value: 100
	The only money spent on the recovery of these items has been in terms of staff time. There are more than 13,500 works of art in the Government Art Collection's holdings. At any one time approximately 70 per cent. of these are on display in over 400 different buildings in the UK and around the world and their location recorded on the GAC database. In addition to this central record the GAC undertakes audits of its holdings remotely and in person and these occasionally show that works are not in their previously recorded locations. However, after extensive searches many of these subsequently turn up. The answer provided on 10 November 2008, that eight works of art are currently registered as missing for the period 1 November 2007 to 31 October 2008, therefore represents the situation as it is at this particular moment.
	These eight works of art are not original works but multiples.

Government Art Collection

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 10 November 2008,  Official Report, column 817W, on the Government Art Collection, for what reason his Department's website lists only two works of art as missing; and when the relevant page of the website was last updated.

Barbara Follett: The two works of art listed on the DCMS's website were original works of art and were known to have been stolen from a particular building in February 2008. The circumstances were advertised on the DCMS website and the police were informed. They have since been recovered by the police and the relevant page was updated 13 November.

Historic Buildings: Consultants

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much has been spent on consultancy fees in respect of  (a) Old Sarum Castle and  (b) Wardour Castle by (i) his Department and (ii) English Heritage in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Barbara Follett: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has not spent anything on consultancy fees in respect of Old Sarum Castle and Wardour Castle in each of the last five years.
	English Heritage state that they have spent the following amounts on consultancy fees in respect of each of the properties in the same period:
	
		
			   
			   Old Sarum Castle  Wardour Castle 
			 2003-04 0 0 
			 2004-05 921 0 
			 2005-06 0 0 
			 2006-07 0 0 
			 2007-08 20,143 0

Historic Buildings: Finance

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much  (a) income has been received and  (b) expenditure has been incurred by English Heritage in respect of (i) Old Sarum Castle and (ii) Wardour Castle since 1996.

Barbara Follett: English Heritage state that they have received the following income and incurred the following costs from Old Sarum Castle and Wardour Castle since 1996-97.
	
		
			   
			   Earned income  Expenditure 
			 Old Sarum Castle 2,719,216 2,828,108 
			 Wardour Castle 798,341 1,096,938

Licensing Laws

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will bring forward proposals to extend the grounds on which the police can object to the issue of a temporary events notice (TEN) to include  (a) the prevention of public nuisance and  (b) the protection of children from harm; and if he will establish a mechanism for public objections in the application process for TENs.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Government have no plans to extend police powers of objection to temporary event notices (TENs), nor do they plan to extend the right of objection to local residents. The system for temporary permitted activities (TENs) is a light touch system involving minimum bureaucracy. Such a light touch system is possible because of the limitations directly imposed on the use of the system by the Licensing Act 2003.
	Only the police can object to the giving of a TEN, on the grounds of crime and disorder. However, there are also powers for the police or environmental health officers to close events where there is excessive noise nuisance. The giving of a TEN does not overrule existing environmental health, planning and health and safety law, all of which must be complied with for a temporary event to occur legally.
	Of course, if there were evidence that problems were frequently occurring at events authorised by a TEN then we could look at the legislation again. However, despite there being an estimated 119,000 TENs given in 2007-08, I am not aware of such evidence.

Lotteries: Housing

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what advice the Gambling Commission has  (a) given and  (b) retracted on the legality of house sale competitions.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Gambling Commission has advised that it does not have regulatory responsibilities in respect of prize competitions and free draws but that they do monitor the boundary between them and Lotteries. The Gambling Commission has published a range of guidance documents on the implementation of the Gambling Act 2005, including Guidance on Prize Competitions and Free Draws, published in November 2007. A press release urging homeowners to be aware of the rules on 'house competitions' was published in October 2008. The press release advised that individuals considering or operating a scheme to sell their house using prize competitions should consider the guidance on the Gambling Commission website and take independent legal advice before proceeding.
	The Commission advised that in September 2008 they corrected advice given in response to an e-mail inquiry from a member of the public relating to house competitions, but that no other advice or guidance which has been published on the website or given in any other form has been subsequently corrected or retracted.

Public Houses

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what net change in the number has been made of the net change in the number of public houses over the last year.

Gerry Sutcliffe: We have made no assessment of the net change in the number of public houses over the last year. The DCMS Statistical Bulletin on Alcohol, Entertainment and Late Night Refreshment does not identify the number of pubs in England and Wales; but rather the number of premises authorising the sale or supply of alcohol by means of a premises licence or a club premises certificate. These figures apply not only to public houses, but also to other licensed premises such as hotels, off licences and convenience stores.

Regeneration: Coastal Areas

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what funds have been made available for regeneration of seaside towns in the last three years; and how much has been given to each area.

Barbara Follett: holding answer 18 November 2008
	My Department's contribution to the Government's work in support of the regeneration of seaside towns is through the 45 million (15 million pa over the next three years) Sea Change Programme. This has only been in place since 1 April 2008, but 14.6 million has been made available for regeneration of seaside towns through this initiative since then. The funding allocated to each area is set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Seaside town/resort  Grant awarded () 
			 Blackpool 4,000,000 
			 Dover 3,850,000 
			 Torbay 2,247,532 
			 Berwick 1,000,000 
			 Bexhill-on-Sea 1,000,000 
			 Littlehampton 480,800 
			 Teignmouth 376,676 
			 Boscombe 455,000 
			 Weston-Super-Mare 951,447 
			 Westward Ho! (1)100,000 
			 North Tyneside (2)29,525 
			 Fleetwood (2)30,000 
			 Margate (2)30,000 
			 Illfracombe (2)30,000 
			 Withernsea (2)30,000 
			 (1) Development grant. (2) Feasibility grant.

Swimming: Elderly

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many representations his Department has received from local authorities on the financial effects of proposals for free swimming for over-60s.

Andy Burnham: We are collating final responses but have received to date approximately 30 representations from local authorities on the financial effects of proposals for free swimming for over-60s.

Tourism: Departmental Coordination

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he last chaired a meeting with the Ministers from the Department for Communities and Local Government, Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and the Home Office to discuss UK tourism-related issues.

Barbara Follett: holding answer 17 November 2008
	The Secretary of State and I regularly raise tourism-related issues in the course of discussions with colleagues across Government.
	My predecessor, the right hon. Member for Barking (Margaret Hodge) met with the right hon. Member for Birmingham Hodge Hill (Mr. Byrne) the former Minister of State at the Home Office in April to discuss visas. She also met with the hon. Member for Gloucester (Mr. Dhanda) the former Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Department for Communities and Local Government on 21 July 2008 to discuss concerns raised by VisitBritain, on behalf of small accommodation providers about The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and its impact on their establishments.
	I will shortly be meeting with the right hon. Member for Oldham East and Sadleworth (Mr. Woolas), Minister of State at the Home Office and HM Treasury to continue the discussions on visas and also with the right hon. Member for Wolverhampton, South-East (Mr. McFadden), Minister for State at the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform to discuss Daylight Saving.

LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Racial Harassment

David Simpson: To ask the Leader of the House how many complaints of racial abuse relating to staff for which her Office is responsible have been  (a) investigated and  (b) upheld in the last 12 months.

Chris Bryant: The Leader's Office has a policy of zero tolerance to all forms of abuse. There have been no complaints of racial abuse within the last 12 months.

OLYMPICS

Departmental NDPBs

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what the remit is of each non-departmental public body sponsored by her Office; and what budget each has been set for  (a) 2008-09,  (b) 2009-10 and  (c) 2010-11.

Tessa Jowell: The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) is responsible for the delivery of infrastructure and venues to be acquired, constructed or adapted in preparation for the London Olympic and Paralympic games in 2012. The ODA's budget is set annually and for 2008-09 is 1,361.1 million. ODA's budget has not yet been set for the following two years, but its estimated spend for those two years is 1,744.2 million for 2009-10 and 1,615.2 million for 2010-11. The figures for 2009-10 and 2010-11 are subject to revision in the light of actual outturn in 2008-09.
	The Olympic Lottery Distributor (OLD) will be responsible for the distribution of up to 1,835 million of national lottery funds over its lifetime. Its remit is to make grants or loans which it considers necessary or expedient for the purpose of, or in connection with, the provision of facilities, services or functions for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games. The OLD draws down funds from the Olympic Lottery Distribution Fund as they are needed to meet grant payments and running costs. The OLD currently expects to distribute 125 million in grant payments during 2008-09 and estimates that it will distribute 374 million in 2009-10 and 378 million in 2010-11. The OLD prepares its running costs budget annually, in advance of each financial year and has budgeted 0.9 million in 2008-09 for its running costs.

Olympic Games 2012: East Midlands

Dennis Skinner: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what locations in the East Midlands are being considered as training sites for athletes for the 2012 Olympics.

Tessa Jowell: A list of those facilities in the East Midlands that feature in the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) Pre-Games Training Camp Guide is provided in the following table. LOCOG will provide each National Olympic Committee (NOC) and National Paralympic Committee (NPC) with a financial award of up to 25,000 for them to spend at facilities they choose from the guide. In addition, NOCs and NPCs are free to base themselves elsewhere in the East Midlands at facilities not included in this list.
	
		
			  Pre-games training camps, East Midlands 
			   Facility name  Olympic sport  Paralympic sport 
			 1. Arena Sports Kettering Fencing Boccia 
			   Taekwondo Wheelchair Table Tennis 
			   VolleyballIndoor Paralympic Volleyball (sitting) 
			Wheelchair Tennis 
			 
			 2. Ashfield School Campus Athletics  
			 
			 3. Braunstone Leisure Centre Badminton, Paralympic Judo 
			   Taekwondo Wheelchair Table Tennis 
			Wheelchair Basketball 
			Wheelchair Rugby 
			 
			 4. City of Nottingham Tennis Centre Tennis Wheelchair Tennis 
			 
			 5. Corby East Midlands International Swimming Pool AquaticsSwimming Paralympic Swimming 
			 
			 6. Derbyshire County Cricket Club Gateway Centre Archery  
			 
			 7. East Midlands Gymnastics Centre GymnasticsArtistic  
			 
			 8. Highfields Sports Club Hockey  
			 
			 9. Laughton Manor Equestrian Centre EquestrianJumping  
			   EquestrianDressage  
			   EquestrianEventing  
			 
			 10. Leicester Grammar School Basketball  
			   Fencing  
			   Hockey  
			   Table Tennis  
			 
			 11. Loughborough University Archery Paralympic Archery 
			   Athletics Paralympic Athletics 
			   AquaticsSwimming, Boccia 
			   AquaticsSynchro Paralympic CyclingRoad 
			   AquaticsWater Polo Paralympic 5-a-side Football 
			   Badminton Paralympic 7-a-side Football 
			   Basketball Goalball 
			   Boxing Paralympic Judo 
			   CyclingRoad Paralympic Powerlifting 
			   Fencing Paralympic Swimming 
			   Football Wheelchair Table Tennis 
			   GymnasticsRhythmic Paralympic Volleyball (sitting) 
			   GymnasticsArtistic Wheelchair Basketball 
			   GymnasticsTrampoline Wheelchair Fencing 
			   Handball Wheelchair Rugby 
			   Hockey Wheelchair Tennis 
			   Judo  
			   Table Tennis  
			   Taekwondo  
			   Tennis  
			   Triathlon  
			   VolleyballIndoor  
			   VolleyballBeach  
			   Weightlifting  
			   Wrestling  
			 
			 12. Moulton College EquestrianJumping Boccia 
			   EquestrianDressage Paralympic Equestrian 
			   EquestrianEventing Goalball 
			   Fencing  
			 
			 13. National Water Sports Centre CanoeSlalom Paralympic Rowing 
			   CanoeFlatwater  
			   Fencing  
			   Rowing  
			   Table Tennis  
			   Triathlon  
			 
			 14. Nottingham Forest Football Club Football  
			 
			 15. Nottingham Trent University Badminton Boccia 
			   Basketball Paralympic Equestrian 
			   EquestrianJumping Goalball 
			   EquestrianDressage Wheelchair Table Tennis 
			   EquestrianEventing Paralympic Volleyball (sitting) 
			   Fencing Wheelchair Basketball 
			Wheelchair Fencing 
			Wheelchair Rugby 
			 
			 16. Nottingham Wild Cats Arena Basketball Wheelchair Basketball 
			 
			 17. Oakham School CyclingRoad  
			 
			 18. Princess Royal Sports Arena Athletics Paralympic Athletics 
			   Fencing Wheelchair Fencing 
			Wheelchair Rugby 
			 
			 19. Repton School Archery  
			   Badminton  
			   Fencing  
			   Hockey  
			   Table Tennis  
			 
			 20. Riseholme College, the University of Lincoln EquestrianJumping  
			   EquestrianDressage  
			   EquestrianEventing  
			 
			 21. Rockingham Triangle Stadium Athletics  
			 
			 22. Rushden and Diamonds Sports Complex Archery  
			   Fencing  
			   Football  
			   Judo  
			   Table Tennis  
			   Wrestling  
			 
			 23. Saffron Lane Sports Centre Athletics  
			 
			 24. The Defence Animal Centre, Melton Mowbray CyclingRoad Paralympic CyclingRoad, 
			   EquestrianJumping Paralympic Equestrian 
			   EquestrianDressage  
			   EquestrianEventing  
			 
			 25. The Northants Basketball Centre Basketball  
			 26. Trent Bridge Archery Paralympic Archery

Olympic Games 2012: Transport

Paul Burstow: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what estimate she has made of the length of time it will take to travel to the 2012 Olympic Games main stadium from  (a) Manchester,  (b) Leeds,  (c) Birmingham,  (d) Edinburgh,  (e) each London borough and  (f) each European capital city when the Games are taking place.

Tessa Jowell: This far in advance of the games, the timetables operated by private sector train operators and airlines are indeterminate, therefore it would be misleading to give precise journey times this far ahead.
	The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) continues to work with a wide range of stakeholders to plan transport arrangements for the 2012 games. This work includes extensive transport demand forecasting and modelling, which draws on estimates of journey times from a range of sources. People will travel to the Olympic Park using a wide range of transport modes including National Rail, London Underground, Docklands Light Railway (DLR), bus, coach, park and ride as well as walking and cycling. Journey times will vary by mode, or a combination of modes.
	The ODA uses a range of data sources to predict journey times including the Department for Transport's (Transport Direct Portal) database, plus the most up-to-date data from train operating companies and Transport for London. The ODA also uses a range of computer modelling techniques to estimate total journey times and 'costs', which are widely used by transport practitioners, agencies and local authorities across the country.
	Journey times from European cities will vary considerably depending on whether people are travelling by Eurostar, short-haul flights, or road-based transport. If travelling by Eurostar, people will be able to interchange at either Ebbsfleet or St. Pancras where they will have a train journey of either 10 minutes or seven minutes via the games-time 'Javelin' service to Stratford International for the Olympic Park.

INNOVATION, UNIVERSITIES AND SKILLS

Aimhigher Programme: North West

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Higher Education Funding Council for England's arrangements for liaison in the North West region with sixth form and other further education colleges involved with the Aimhigher initiative.

David Lammy: Arrangements for ensuring the effectiveness of liaison with sixth form and other further education colleges in the North West are made through area partnership committees for each of the Aimhigher areas. Each area partnership committee has a lead higher education institution that acts as the treasurer to the committee ensuring accountability for funding. Sixth form and further education colleges are part of each area committee. In addition, Action on Access provides support for partnerships. The area partnership committee structure was introduced for Aimhigher for the 2008-11 phase of the programme. The first monitoring reports will be available in July 2009 and will be evaluated by an external assessment.
	The Higher Education Funding Council for England is about to conduct a small scale 'value for money' study into the effectiveness of partnership arrangements in the North West.

Apprentices: York

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many people were on  (a) apprenticeships and  (b) advanced apprenticeships in (i) City of York constituency and (ii) the City of York local authority area (A) on the latest date for which figures are available and (B) the same date in each of the last 10 years.

Si�n Simon: Table 1 shows the number of apprenticeship starts for learners living in the parliamentary constituency of City of York, and separately for learners living in York local authority. Figures are presented from 2002/03 to 2006/07, the latest year for which fully audited data is available. Comparable information is not available prior to the formation of the Learning and Skills Council in 2001.
	
		
			  Table 1: Apprenticeship starts in City of York parliamentary constituency and York local authority 
			   2002/03  2003/04  2004/05  2005/06  2006/07 
			  City of York parliamentary constituency  
			 Apprenticeships 370 310 360 100 150 
			 Advanced Apprenticeships 130 110 110 250 270 
			 Total 500 420 470 360 420 
			   
			  York local authority  
			 Apprenticeships 560 580 580 190 250 
			 Advanced Apprenticeships 220 120 190 400 440 
			 Total 780 690 770 590 690 
			  Notes: 1. Figures may not sum due to rounding 2. Local authority and parliamentary constituency is based on learner's home postcode  Source: Work Based Learning ILR data

Departmental NDPBs

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what the remit is of each non-departmental public body sponsored by his Department; and what budget each has been set for  (a) 2008-09,  (b) 2009-10 and  (c) 2010-11.

Si�n Simon: The key functions of DUIS NDPBs can be found in Annex 9 of the 2007-08 DIUS Departmental Report 2008:
	http://www.dius.gov.uk/docs/about/21076_DIUS%20ARA_Annexes.pdf
	or alternatively, more information is contained on the website of each of DIUS NDPB as shown in the following list:
	http://www.hefce.ac.uk/
	http://www.slc.co.uk/
	http://www.offa.org.uk/
	http://www.lsc.gov.uk/
	http://www.ukces.org.uk/
	http://www.innovateuk.org/
	http://www.designcouncil.org.uk/
	http://www.ahrc.ac.uk/Pages/default.aspx
	http://www.bbsrc.ac.uk/
	http://www.epsrc.ac.uk/default.htm
	http://www.esrc.ac.uk/ESRCInfoCentre/index.aspx
	http://www.mrc.ac.uk/index.htm
	http://www.nerc.ac.uk/
	http://www.scitech.ac.uk/
	http://www.investorsinpeople.co.uk/Pages/Home.aspx
	http://www.publictechnology.net/modules.php?op=modloadname=Newsfile=articlesid=16089
	(for info on QIA, CEL and LSIS)
	http://www.nesta.org.uk
	The budgets for the Department's executive non-departmental public bodies are set out in the following table:
	
		
			   million 
			  Non - departmental public body  2008-09  2009-10  2010-11 
			 Higher Education Funding Council for England 7,466.7 7,706.3 8,061.0 
			 Student Loans Company 82.3 74.7 77,1 
			 Office for Fair Access 0.5 0.5 0.5 
			 Learning and Skills Council 11,589.0 12,017.0 12,599.0 
			 UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES)(1) 69.7 68.1 67.9 
			 Technology Strategy Board 180.0 243.0 253.0 
			 Design Council 6.0 6.0 6.0 
			 Arts and Humanities Research Council 103.5 104.4 108.8 
			 Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council 427.0 452.6 471.1 
			 Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council 795.1 814.5 843.5 
			 Economic and Social Research Council 164.9 170.6 177.6 
			 Medical Research Council 605.5 658.5 707.0 
			 Natural Environment Research Council 392.2 408.2 436.0 
			 Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) 623.6 630.3 6516 
			 investors in People UK (IIP UK)(2) 6.7   
			 Quality Improvement Agency (QIA)(3) 1.1   
			 National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts(NESTA)(4) 38 38 38 
			 (1) Includes residual funding for Sector Skills Development Agency ) in 2007-08. (2) Funding for IIP UK for 2009-10 and 2010-11 is yet to be announced. (3) On 1 October 2008, the Quality Improvement Agency (QIA) and the Centre for Excellence in Leadership (CEL) transferred their operations to the Learning and Skills Improvement Service (LSIS). In March 2008, the Secretary of State sent LSIS a letter announcing a grant of 129 million for 2008-09, This figure has since been raised to 145 million. (4) National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA) is funded by an endowment from the National lottery rather than grant-in-aid.  Note: The advisory NDPBs sponsored by the Department incur little or no information on budgets for 2008-11 is not available.  Source: Departmental Annual Report 2007-08 Annex 9 except Research Councils and STFC: The Allocations of the Science Budget 2008-09 to 2010-11 and HP UK and QIA : Main Estimate 2008-09.

Higher Education: North West

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what meetings he has had with the Higher Education Funding Council for England to discuss the new University Challenge learning hubs in the North West region.

David Lammy: Ministers and officials speak to many institutions and organisations about issues that affect Individuals' progression to higher education. The Higher Education Funding Council for England Is now looking at the responses to consultation on our new University Challenge policy but it is already clear that this is going to be a very successful policy, which has generated interest in all parts of the country.
	Decisions on which proposals should be supported will be exclusively for the Council.

Higher Education: North West

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what discussions the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) has had with  (a) employees and  (b) employer organisations in the North West on their input to funding HEFCE's decision-making process in the last 12 months.

David Lammy: HEFCE uses formulae to determine how most of the money is allocated between HE institutions, helping to reduce the number of separate funding streams and minimise the accountability burden. These formulae take account of certain factors for each institution, including the number and type of students, the subjects taught, and the amount and quality of research undertaken.
	In the North West region, close contact with the North West Development Agency, the Learning and Skills Council and other agencies, together with employer representative involvement in its Employer Engagement Panel, routinely help to inform HEFCE's decisions over that funding which is not allocated by formula.

Higher Education: North West

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what groups his officials have met in the North West to discuss widening access to higher education in the region in the last 12 months.

David Lammy: Widening access to higher education is a Government priority and my officials have engaged in discussions with a wide range of partners in the North West on numerous topics related to widening access to higher education. As our policy initiatives are primarily taken forward by stakeholders, we find contact with such groups invaluable as they can advise on issues at a local level and we can update them on national developments. Specific groups involved include lifelong learning networks, educational establishments, those involved in the Train to Gain initiative and Aimhigher Partnerships, among others.
	The North West enjoys an excellent reputation for its co-ordinated approach involving a wide range of regional partners and we expect that close involvement of all partners to continue.

Literacy

Dennis Skinner: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what recent estimate he has made of the levels of adult literacy in England; and if he will make a statement.

Si�n Simon: The 2003 Skills for Life Needs Survey estimated that 5.2 million adults have literacy skills below Level 1 (broadly equivalent to an English GCSE at grades D to G.) A further survey will be conducted during this spending review period.
	Good literacy skills are crucial to life and work, and the Government are committed to enabling adults to improve these skills. Free literacy courses are available to adults in England through the Government's Skills for Life strategy, which was launched in 2001. So far 2,276,000 adults have improved their literacy, language and numeracy skills and gained a first qualification, meaning the Government have met the 2010 Skills for Life target over two years early. Well over 1 million of these qualifications were achieved in literacy.
	Our long-term ambition, as set out in World Class Skills, is for 95 per cent. of adults to have functional literacy skills by 2020, up from 85 per cent. in 2005. To achieve this trajectory the Learning and Skills Council's 2007 Statement of Priorities set out plans to deliver 597,000 literacy achievements at Level 1 or above during the period 2008 to 2011.

North West Lifelong Learning Network

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what discussions  (a) he and  (b) his officials have had with the Higher Education Funding Council for England on the North West Lifelong Learning network.

David Lammy: Ministers and officials speak to many institutions and organisations about issues that affect individuals' progression to higher education. The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) is responsible for managing the lifelong learning network (LLN) programme and they lead in discussions about the progress that the individual networks are making.
	There are five lifelong learning networks in the North West: Cheshire and Warrington, Cumbria Higher Learning, Lancashire, Greater Merseyside and West Lancashire. These LLNs have received over 15 million of HEFCE funding.
	The overall objective for LLNs is to improve the coherence, clarity and certainty of progression opportunities for vocational learners into and through higher education. HEFCE officials have discussed with individual LLNs matters relating to additional student numbers, the interim evaluation of LLNs and the use of e-systems to support learners.
	The HEFCE institutional team also attend the HEFCE funded HEEL (Higher Education in East Lancashire) group which is in its second year of operation. HEEL has four working groups: curriculum development, community engagement, employer engagement and marketing.

Research: Agriculture

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how much his Department has spent on  (a) direct grants and  (b) joint projects with universities for research on agriculture in each of the last 10 years.

Si�n Simon: The Department does not provide direct funding for agricultural research, but allocates the science and research budget to research councils who then fund different areas of research. The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) is responsible for agricultural research. BBSRC estimated spend on research in agriculture in the last 10 years is set out in the following tables.
	
		
			  Estimated spend  (  million ) 
			   1998/99  1999/2000  2000/01  2001/02  2002/03  2003/04  2004/05  2005/06  2006/07  2007/08 
			 Joint projects with universities 16.4 17.9 20.0 22.6 23.2 22.5 21.6 20.4 22.9 23.6 
			 Direct grants 33.1 33.6 34.9 35.8 37.1 35.9 37.1 39.0 40.1 46.0 
			 Total 49.5 51.6 54.9 58.4 60.3 58.4 58.7 59.4 63.0 69.7 
			  Notes: 1. 'Direct grants' includes core strategic grant (CSG) and research grant spend at BBSRC-sponsored institutes. 2. 'Joint projects with universities' includes research grants* at other institutions. 
		
	
	
		
			  Estimated spend  (  million ) 
			   1998/99  1999/2000  2000/01  2001/02  2002/03  2003/04  2004/05  2005/06  2006/07  2007/08 
			 Institutes: CSG 27.4 28.5 28.8 28.6 29.1 27.8 29.8 31.8 32.0 34.3 
			 Institutes: grants 5.8 5.2 6.1 7.1 8.0 8.2 7.3 7.2 8.0 11.7 
			 Direct grants (institutes): total 33.1 33.6 34.9 35.8 37.1 35.9 37.1 39.0 40.1 46.0 
			  Note: This table shows the breakdown of institute funding by CSG and research grant spend.

Research: Finance

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how much co-funding from the private sector the research councils attracted in each of the last 15 years, expressed in  (a) cash and  (b) real terms.

Si�n Simon: holding answer 18 November 2008
	 The total value of co-funding from the private sector for the 10 complete years since 1998/99, the earliest year from which figures for the councils are available without incurring disproportionate cost, is as follows:
	
		
			  Table 1. Cash terms or nearest approximation( 1) 
			   Total (000) 
			 1998/99 72,890 
			 1999/2000 69,365 
			 2000/01 79,396 
			 2001/02 117,508 
			 2002/03 139,519 
			 2003/04 96,027 
			 2004/05 89,496 
			 2005/06 81,399 
			 2006/07 89,767 
			 2007/08 108,733 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2. Real terms or nearest approximation( 1) 
			   GDP deflator  Total (000) 
			 1998/99 80.396 90,644 
			 1999/2000 81.976 84,616 
			 2000/01 83.051 95,599 
			 2001/02 84.903 138,403 
			 2002/03 87.64 159,196 
			 2003/04 90.138 106,533 
			 2004/05 92.589 96,659 
			 2005/06 94.485 86,150 
			 2006/07 97.03 92,525 
			 2007/08 100 108,733 
			 (1) Some of the figures included in table 1 are on resource/accrual terms and represent the nearest approximation available for cash terms without incurring disproportionate cost. Real terms value in table 2 were calculated from these figures by applying GDP deflators, which were last updated 30 September 2008.  Notes: 1. The private sector has been defined as organisations not controlled by Government. 2. AHRC was not formed until 1 April 2005. 3. ESRC data are not available for 1998/99, 1999/2000 or 2000/01.

Students: Finance

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many students funded by the Learning and Skills Council were resident in each English region in each year since 2003-04.

Si�n Simon: Table 1 shows the number of learners funded by the Learning and Skills Council resident in each region. Figures are presented from 2003/04 to 2006/07, the latest year for which fully audited data are available.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of Learners funded by the Learning and Skills Council by region and funding stream, 2003/04 to 2006/07 
			  Region  Adult and community learning  Further education colleges  University for industry  Work based learning  Train to gain  Grand total 
			  2003/04   
			 East of England 91,600 341,100 18,800 24,700  476,200 
			 East Midlands 74,100 367,700 3,000 26,100  471,000 
			 Greater London 139,100 501,700 71,800 19,900  732,500 
			 North East 37,800 248,800 14,900 20,100  321,600 
			 North West 116,600 531,300 72,000 48,400  768,300 
			 South East 176,500 516,800 29,800 36,100  759,100 
			 South West 85,500 417,100 5,800 28,600  536,900 
			 West Midlands 65,800 467,900 23,000 34,600  591,200 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 66,700 420,500 26,700 35,900  549,800 
			 Other 33,400 86,800 3,800 7,100  131,000 
			 Total 887,000 3,899,700 269,400 281,500  5,337,500 
			
			  2004/05   
			 East of England 93,600 331,700 36,700 21,300  483,300 
			 East Midlands 67,900 352,400 50,500 22,700  493,500 
			 Greater London 140,700 499,800 70,300 18,700  729,500 
			 North East 38,900 252,400 30,000 19,300  340,600 
			 North West 100,700 507,900 65,900 44,400  718,900 
			 South East 150,400 479,500 53,200 31,700  714,900 
			 South West 86,500 406,000 30,500 23,400  546,400 
			 West Midlands 53,700 452,800 41,500 30,400  578,400 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 60,600 414,100 45,600 31,500  551,800 
			 Other 51,500 90,000 7,400 5,900  154,900 
			 Total 844,500 3,786,700 431,700 249,400  5,312,200 
			
			  2005/06   
			 East of England 83,600 279,100 31,200 10,100  404,000 
			 East Midlands 50,200 297,000 34,500 3,100  384,700 
			 Greater London 132,200 463,800 52,100 17,000  665,200 
			 North East 38,200 200,000 23,200 18,000  279,400 
			 North West 113,000 448,500 43,900 39,300  644,700 
			 South East 129,400 403,900 43,300 28,500  605,100 
			 South West 59,100 342,300 24,000 23,200  448,500 
			 West Midlands 53,300 411,600 32,200 27,000  524,100 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 63,600 350,000 33,400 28,800  475,900 
			 Other 38,100 95,000 6,700 33,100  172,900 
			 Total 760,600 3,291,300 324,400 228,200  4,604,500 
			
			  2006-07   
			 East of England 80,200 226,100 18,800 21,200 20,700 367,100 
			 East Midlands 48,600 224,100 15,000 21,800 17,800 327,300 
			 Greater London 132,300 407,700 32,800 16,800 21,700 611,300 
			 North East 39,900 158,100 9,300 16,800 17,700 241,700 
			 North West 105,900 354,800 22,900 41,700 35,400 560,800 
			 South East 127,100 331,900 25,800 30,800 20,300 536,000 
			 South West 63,900 265,500 16,300 24,300 16,400 386,400 
			 West Midlands 57,600 325,900 20,800 26,500 29,700 460,600 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 52,100 287,200 16,300 30,800 22,900 409,200 
			 Other 34,500 51,600 2,500 5,100 36,100 129,800 
			 Total 742,100 2,633,000 180,500 235,800 238,700 4,030,000 
			  Notes: 1. Figures are taken from the Individualised Learner Record final F05 data freezes. An earlier freeze of University for Industry data has been used due to data issues with the final freeze. 2. Region is based on home postcode of the learner. 3. The 'other' category includes incomplete records and learners not resident in England, but who are learning in England (for example, learners resident in Scotland or Wales). 4. For Train to Gain and Work Based Learning, participation is counted as the number of starters. 5. There will be an element of double counting in the figures as some learners will participate in more than one funding area. 6. Totals may not equal the sum of their components due to rounding.  7. Train to Gain was created in April 2006. Standard reporting practice is to include the months of April to July 2006 in the 2006/07 academic year.  Source: Individualised Learner records

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Carbon Emissions: Housing

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the budget for the Low Carbon Buildings Programme is in  (a) 2008-09 and  (b) each of the next five financial years.

Mike O'Brien: The Low Carbon Buildings Programme is the Government's 86 million capital grant programme funding the installation of on-site energy technologies for householders, communities, public sector and business.
	The budget is not allocated by year. To date, the spend is as follows:
	
		
			   
			  FY  Phase one  Phase two 
			 2006-07 3,060,739 n/a 
			 2007-08 4,551,071 491,025 
			 2008-09 (1)1,803,366 (2)4,128,692 
			 (1) Up to September (2) Up to August

Carbon Emissions: Housing

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what funding the Government have provided for the Low Carbon Buildings Programme in each financial year since its creation.

Mike O'Brien: The budget for the Low Carbon Buildings Programme is not allocated by year. The total budget for the programme is 86 million.
	We have spent the following in each financial year since 2006.
	
		
			   
			  FY  Phase one  Phase two 
			 2006-07 3,060,739 n/a 
			 2007-08 4,551,071 491,025 
			 2008-09 (1)1,803,366 (2)4,128,692 
			 (1) Up to September (2) Up to August

Departmental Finance

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the total departmental spending limit for his Department is in 2008-09.

Mike O'Brien: The final budget for DECC will be agreed once negotiations on the machinery of Government changes with BERR and DEFRA are complete.

Departmental Finance

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the public purse of its creation.

Mike O'Brien: 18,000 to date on branding. The final budget for DECC will be agreed once negotiations on the machinery of government changes with BERR and DEFRA are complete.

Departmental Manpower

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many permanent staff in  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies are classed as (i) staff without posts and (ii) part of a people action team.

Mike O'Brien: The staffing for DECC will be agreed once negotiations on the machinery of Government changes with BERR and DEFRA are complete. The new Department (DECC) will consist of posts taken from the existing Departments for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) and from Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, (DEFRA). The detail is still being worked on and once the negotiations are complete we will be in a position to answer this question.

Departmental NDPBs

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the remit is of each non-departmental public body sponsored by his Department; and what budget each has been set for  (a) 2008-09,  (b) 2009-10 and  (c) 2010-11.

Mike O'Brien: The Cabinet Office paper in the House Library titled 'Machinery of Government: economy, business, climate change, energy and environment' sets out much of this information. There are ongoing negotiations to determine the overall functions of the Department and which additional regulators, inspectorate, Executive agencies and NDPB might become the responsibility of the Department. Once these are completed they will be a matter of public record.

Departmental Offices

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what offices his Department  (a) owns and  (b) rents in Greater London.

Mike O'Brien: DECC owns no offices of its own. It is using 3 Whitehall Place, Ergon House and 1 Victoria street as offices for its staff in Greater London at the moment. We intend to locate all our London staff in 3 Whitehall Place.

Departmental Personnel

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change who the members are of his Department's management board and its sub-committees.

Mike O'Brien: The precise make-up of the management board and other supporting governance structures has yet to be finalised.

Departmental Personnel

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many civil service fast streamers are in post in his Department.

Mike O'Brien: The staffing for DECC will be agreed once negotiations on the Machinery of Government changes with BERR and DEFRA are complete. The new Department (DECC) will consist of posts taken from the existing Departments for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) and from Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, (DEFRA). The detail is still being worked on and once the negotiations are complete we will be in a position to answer this question.

Departmental Recruitment

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many people aged over  (a) 55 years and  (b) 60 years his Department has recruited since its inception.

Mike O'Brien: The Department for Energy and Climate Change was created on 3 October 2008 and as yet information on final staff numbers are not available and have not been agreed. This information will be released as soon as possible.

Departmental Reorganisation

Greg Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will place in the Library copies of the letters of appointment from the Prime Minister to  (a) him and  (b) Ministers in his Department.

Mike O'Brien: No letters of appointment have been issued to the Secretary of State or other Ministers.

Energy

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his Department's strategic objectives are.

Mike O'Brien: The machinery of Government document of 3 October 2008 details the targets that DECC has inherited as follows:
	Lead the global effort to avoid dangerous climate change (PSA);
	Climate change tackled internationally and through domestic action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (DSO);
	Ensure the reliable supply and efficient use of clean, safe and competitively priced energy (DSO);
	Manage energy liabilities effectively and responsibly (DSO);
	DECC will contribute to BERR's DSO to deliver free and fair markets, with greater competition, for businesses, consumers and employees.
	Progress against these will have been reported on in BERR and DEFRA publications to date and DECC will be reporting on these targets as part of its annual report. DECC will be considering if the DSOs adequately reflect its targets and if further DSOs are required.

Energy Technologies Institute: Finance

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change 
	(1)  how much the Government plan to give to the Energy Technologies Institute in each of the next five financial years;
	(2)  what funding the Government have provided for the Energy Technologies Institute in each financial year since its creation.

Si�n Simon: I have been asked to reply.
	The Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) was legally established as a limited liability partnership in December 2007 between BP, Caterpillar, EDF Energy, EON, Rolls Royce, Shell and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS). The DIUS contribution to ETI is provided through the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and the Technology Strategy Board. The total DIUS contribution in 2008 is estimated to be 3.77 million. ETI expenditure is expected to rise over the next few years as technology projects come on stream. DIUS is committed to provide up to 50 million pa for the next decade to match contributions from industry partners.

Marine Renewables Deployment Fund: Finance

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the budget is for the Marine Renewables Deployment Fund in  (a) this financial year and  (b) each of the next five financial years.

Mike O'Brien: The machinery of Government changes of 3 October 2008 announced the creation of the Department of Energy and Climate Change, formed from the energy group located in the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and the climate change group located in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
	The annual budgets for the Department of Energy and Climate Change are currently being decided. The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will transfer their budgets for Energy and Climate Change respectively, based on the settlements agreed in the comprehensive spending review 2007 (CSR07), for the financial years 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11. The annual budgets for the Department for Energy and Climate Change will be agreed in due course.

Marine Renewables Deployment Fund: Finance

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what funding the Government have provided for the Marine Renewables Deployment Fund in each financial year since its creation.

Mike O'Brien: The Marine Renewables Deployment Fund was set up in 2005 with a 50 million budget.

Nuclear Power

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many departmental officials responsible for civil nuclear policy on  (a) new build nuclear sites and  (b) nuclear decommissioning and nuclear materials management have transferred to his Department from the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform; and whether the associated nuclear documents library collection has also been transferred.

Mike O'Brien: 30 staff working on new build policy and 20 staff working on nuclear decommissioning and nuclear materials management policy have transferred from the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform to the Department of Energy and Climate Change.
	There is an electronic library of associated nuclear documents which staff will continue to have access to in DECC.
	The Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs and DECC are concluding discussions on how many of the 19.1 former full time equivalent DEFRA staff responsible for radioactive waste policy will transfer to DECC following the changes. This policy area includes responsibility for all radioactive waste i.e. not just that relating to civil nuclear processes.

Nuclear Power Stations: Decommissioning

Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate the Government has made of the average cost of decommissioning a nuclear power station, including associated clean-up costs.

Mike O'Brien: The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, which is responsible for the decommissioning of the historic civil public nuclear legacy, estimates that the cost of decommissioning the 10 Magnox nuclear power stations in discounted 2008 money values is 5.4 billion. Whilst each site is unique, this provides a simple average estimate cost of around 0.5 billion per nuclear power station.

Renewable Energy: Electricity

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what proportion of electricity was generated from renewable sources in each year from 1990 to 2006.

Mike O'Brien: The following table sets out the proportion of electricity generated from renewable sources in the UK in each year from 1990 to 2006.
	
		
			   Percentage 
			 1990 1.82 
			 1991 1.64 
			 1992 1.99 
			 1993 1.77 
			 1994 2.14 
			 1995 2.06 
			 1996 1.62 
			 1997 1.98 
			 1998 2.38 
			 1999 2.61 
			 2000 2.62 
			 2001 2.48 
			 2002 2.87 
			 2003 2.66 
			 2004 3.59 
			 2005 4.25 
			 2006 4.54 
			  Source: Calculated from data in tables 5.6 and 7.4 of the Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics (DUKES), 2008

Renewable Energy: Finance

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what funding has been identified to give effect in the UK to the European Council's decision to promote a number of carbon capture and storage demonstration projects in member states.

Mike O'Brien: The Government are committed to supporting a demonstration of the full chain of CCS technologies (capture, transport and storage) on a commercial scale coal fired power plant in the UK. The Government are keen to see progress made towards the construction and operation by 2015 of up to 12 demonstration plants of commercial power generation with carbon capture and storage, as agreed by the European Council in spring 2007. The Government hope that the UK's CCS demonstration will participate in the EU's knowledge-sharing demonstration programme, once it is established. The UK has been working hard to tackle the main barrier to progress on demonstrations, lack of funding, by seeking an EU funding mechanism for CCS projects. June European Council Conclusions called on the Commission to bring forward as soon as possible such a mechanism, but to date, no source of EU funding has been identified for CCS demonstrations. However, as part of the ongoing negotiations on the 2020 climate change and energy package, the European Parliament has proposed an amendment to the EU ETS Directive to allocate 500 million allowances from the new entrants reserve to support CCS demonstration projects. The UK Government support this amendment as the best opportunity of agreeing a funding mechanism this year. From DECC and European Commission analysis there are sufficient allowances (the Commission has proposed 5 per cent. of the total) in the new entrants reserve to support both new entrants and CCS demonstrations. The UK is working with other member states, the French presidency and the European Commission to try to reach agreement on this proposal.

River Severn: Tidal Power

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 29 October 2008,  Official Report, column 1104W, on River Severn: tidal power, whether the shortlist of options for a Severn tidal power scheme will contain both tidal-stream and tidal-range solutions.

Mike O'Brien: Subject to internal review the shortlist of options to generate energy from the tidal range of the Severn Estuary will be published in January 2009. It is not possible at this stage to say what options on the shortlist will be. In developing the shortlist we will consider the long list of options published in July 2008, which includes a tidal fence proposal based on the use of tidal stream turbines.

Sellafield

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will place in the Library a copy of the letter of 27 October 2008 from the Minister for Energy to the hon. Member for Newport West on nuclear indemnity for the new Sellafield Parent Body Organisation.

Mike O'Brien: I will place a copy of my letter of 29 October in to the Libraries of the House. It should be noted, however, that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State's letter of 3 November to the Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee provides a more recent account of events. The letter stated that BERR's intention was clearly to place a copy of the letter from my right hon. Friend the Member for Croydon, North (Malcolm Wicks) to my hon. Friend and the Departmental Minute in the Libraries of the House. The purpose was to make Parliament aware that it was seeking the approval to the Sellafield indemnity of the chairs of the relevant Parliament Committees, in the interest of openness and transparency. I regret that, due to an administrative error, this was not done and that it was only noticed when the Departmental Parliamentary Unit was asked on 15 October to check that the letter had been laid. It was deposited in the Libraries of the House on that same day.

Severn Barrage: Nature Conservation

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what work the Severn Tidal Feasibility Study has undertaken to quantify and identify compensatory habitats in the Severn Estuary as required under the EU Habitats Directive.

Mike O'Brien: A high level review of the feasibility of a number of possible compensation and mitigation measures has been undertaken in this first phase of the feasibility study. This review will be published as part of a public consultation early in the new year, subject to an internal review of the feasibility study.
	Should the decision be taken to go ahead with the second phase, then more work is anticipated within the study next year on the scope to mitigate environmental impacts through the construction and operation of tidal power scheme options, and on compensatory measures for impacts that cannot be mitigated.

Solar Power

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his estimate is of the percentage of output from the UK's solar photovoltaic manufacturing facilities which was exported in the most recent period for which information is available.

Mike O'Brien: The Department does not hold this information.

CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES

Children: Databases

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answers of 4 March 2008,  Official Report, column 482W, and 11 November 2008,  Official Report, column 1068W, on children: databases, whether he plans to issue guidance to local authorities to the effect that information on the children of hon. Members should be  (a) excluded from and  (b) shielded on the Contact Point database.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 17 November 2008
	There are no plans to issue such guidance relating to hon. Members' children. ContactPoint will hold basic identifying information on every child and each participating young person ordinarily resident in Englandthere will be no exclusions.
	Guidance has been issued to all local authorities to help them work with their local partners to identify which of their child records require shielding according to the provisions set out in the Children Act 2004 Information Database (England) Regulations 2007. In making such decisions, all local authorities are under a duty to consider the views of the person to whom the record relates, the views of their parent or carer and of any schedule 4 or schedule 5 body (as specified by the regulations) working with that child or young person.
	The guidance sets out that records of children whose circumstances mean that they, or others, are at increased risk of harm (for example, those fleeing domestic violence), may be subject to 'shielding'. The effect of this will be that any details which could give an indication of their whereabouts will be hidden from users' view.

Children: Day Care

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent representations he has received regarding changes in the number of childminders; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 17 November 2008
	The introduction of the Early Year Foundation Stage has generated some correspondence from child minders but the National Childminding Association (NCMA) has made clear that it sees it as a positive development, and as representing what good child minders already do. I recently met Liz Bayram, chief executive of the NCMA, to discuss the issues and challenges faced by child minders in their role as part of the wider child care work force. Child minding has, by its nature, always been a profession whose numbers have varied over time. The Government believe, however, that child minders have a vital role to play, and that they are used and valued by many parents for the unique type of child care they provide.
	It is true that child minding numbers have fallen overall, but it's important to remember that by its nature child minding has always been a profession whose numbers vary over time, for a number of reasons. For instance, Ofsted has recently carried out an exercise to remove child minders who are no longer actively looking after children from its register, which will have reduced the numbers.

Education Maintenance Allowance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much was spent by his Department on the education maintenance allowance in each year since its introduction, broken down by income decile of recipient's parents.

Jim Knight: Education maintenance allowance (EMA) applications are income assessed, based on the learner's total household income, with the maximum income to be eligible in 2007-08 of 30,810.
	The following table shows EMA expenditure for the weekly payments split by income band for each academic year since national rollout (not including bonuses and admin costs):
	
		
			   million 
			  Band  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			 30 195.8 282.2 345.2 363.0 
			 20 17.3 24.3 27.7 27.7 
			 10 9.4 11.3 12.2 12.2 
			 Total 222.5 317.9 385.1 402.9 
		
	
	The following table shows EMA expenditure on the bonus payments paid out for each academic year since national rollout:
	
		
			million 
			 2004-05 44.7 
			 2005-06 80.7 
			 2006-07 97 
			 2007-08 100.5 
		
	
	Information on the income decile of recipients' parents is not available. Information on the household income bands that recipients have been assessed in for EMA purposes is given in the following table. If the learner fully meets the criteria of the scheme they are entitled to receive weekly payments as follows:
	
		
			   Household income per annum 
			  Weekly EMA paymen t  2004-05  2005-06, 2006-07 and 2007-08 
			 30 Up to 19,630 Up to 20,817 
			 20 19,631 to 24,030 20,818 to 25,521 
			 10 24,031 to 30,000 25,522 to 30,810 
			 Nil Over 30,000 Over 30,810

Education Maintenance Allowance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of 16 to 18 year olds were entitled to  (a) the full,  (b) a partial and  (c) no education maintenance allowance in the most recent year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: Education maintenance allowance (EMA) is available to learners aged 16 to 19. There are three EMA weekly payment bands of 10, 20 and 30 paid directly to the young person depending on household income.
	Figures for the proportion for 16 to 18-year-olds who are entitled to EMA are not available. The Department does not hold information on the household income of all participants in education and training.
	However, (provisional) figures are given in the following table for the percentage of 16 to 18-year-olds in full time education in England who are receiving EMA, broken down by payment band.
	
		
			  Table 1: Percentage of 16 to 18-year-olds in full time education receiving EMA by band in 2007/08 (provisional figures) 
			  Weekly payment band  Household income per annum  Percentage of 16 to 18-year-olds in full time education receiving EMA (provisional) 
			 30 Income up to 20,817 38 
			 20 Income of 20,818 to 25,521 4 
			 10 Income of 25,522 to 30,819 4 
			 Total  46 
		
	
	Approximately 54 per cent. of 16 to 18-year-olds in full-time education did not receive EMA in 2007/08. This figure includes those who were not entitled to EMA and those who were entitled but decided not to apply for EMA.

General Certificate of Secondary Education

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what percentage of pupils in the maintained, mainstream sector achieved five GCSEs including a modern language at A* to C in each year since 2004.

Jim Knight: The information required is given in the following table:
	
		
			   Number of pupils achieving achieving  5 A*-C GCSE grades (including equivalents) including a modem foreign language  Percentage of pupils achieving 5 A*-C GCSE grades (including equivalents) including a modern foreign language 
			 2004 180,929 31.1 
			 2005 175,095 30.4 
			 2006 162,309 27.7 
			 2007 154,676 26.1 
			 2008 153,394 26.0 
			  Note: Figures relate to 15-year-olds (age at start of academic year (i.e. 31 August) in maintained, mainstream schools.

Nurseries: Standards

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of  (a) maintained and  (b) private, voluntary and independent full day childcare settings 
	(1)  were deemed (i) outstanding, (ii) good, (iii) satisfactory and (iv) inadequate by Ofsted in each of the last five years;
	(2)  have had to close following Ofsted inspections resulting in a rating of inadequate in each of the last five years.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 10 November 2008
	These are matters for Ofsted. The chief inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to the hon. Member and copies of her replies have been placed in the Library.
	 Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 13 November 2008:
	PARLIAMENTARY QUESTION NUMBER 234129: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many and what proportion of (a) maintained and (b) private, voluntary and independent full day childcare settings were deemed (i) outstanding, (ii) good, (iii) satisfactory and (iv) inadequate by Ofsted in each of the last five years.
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response.
	The numbers and proportions of full day-care settings, broken down by sector and divided by financial year between 2003 and 2008, are shown in the tables below. These figures are derived from the data available at the end of each financial year and include only providers that were active at those points. For each financial year our figures use the most recent inspection visits, where the reports have been quality assured or have not been withdrawn from publication.
	Please note that the change of inspection framework between the periods 2003-05 and 2005-08 means that inspection outcomes between these two periods are not comparable.
	You should be aware that the selection of provision for inspection each year is not random. We select providers for inspection each year based on a number of factors, including the period since their last inspection and the grade awarded them at that inspection. Towards the end of each cycle we inspect a disproportionate number of providers who have not actively cared for children within that cycle. Therefore, these figures should not be used to make judgements about the standards of national provision.
	Where you have asked for private, voluntary and independent full day care, we have provided private and voluntary, as these are the only categories we hold on our database. You will also note that a proportion of full day-care providers are recorded as 'not specified'. This is because this information was not collected as part of our regulatory and inspection activities. We do not, as a matter of course, collect our data in line with the sector types specified in the question. In line with the National Standards, we used the categories of full day care, sessional day care, out of school care and crches, rather than sector type. Consequently, I would advise caution when using these data since they do not represent the full picture within each sector.
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Rt Hon Beverley Hughes MP, Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.
	Inspection gradings for Children Act inspections of full day care providers, broken down by sector
	
		
			  2003-04 financial year 
			   Sector 
			   Local authority maintained  Private/voluntary  Other  Not specified  Total 
			   Number  %  Number  %  Number  %  Number  %  Number  % 
			 Good 125 65 1,870 55 32 56 237 54 2,264 56 
			 Satisfactory 67 35 1,475 44 24 42 190 44 1,756 43 
			 Unsatisfactory 0 0 36 1 1 2 5 1 42 1 
			 Total 192 100 3,385 100 57 100 436 100 4,070 100 
		
	
	
		
			  2004-0 5  financial year 
			   Sector 
			   Local authority maintained  Private/voluntary  Other  Not specified  Total 
			   Number  %  Number  %  Number  %  Number  %  Number  % 
			 Good 193 78 2,714 68 67 71 548 65 3,522 68 
			 Satisfactory 55 22 1,245 31 25 27 284 34 1,609 31 
			 Unsatisfactory 0 0 43 1 2 2 7 1 52 1 
			 Total 248 100 4,002 100 94 100 839 100 5,183 100 
		
	
	Overall care inspection gradings for full day care providers broken down by sector
	
		
			  2005-0 6  financial year 
			   Sector 
			   Local authority maintained  Private/voluntary  Other  Not specified  Total 
			   Number  %  Number  %  Number  %  Number  %  Number  % 
			 Outstanding 3 3 19 1 2 4 23 3 47 2 
			 Good 61 64 952 55 35 65 376 56 1,424 56 
			 Satisfactory 25 27 633 36 17 31 240 36 916 36 
			 Inadequate 5 5 137 8 0 0 33 5 175 7 
			 Total 95 100 1,741 100 54 100 672 100 2,562 100 
		
	
	
		
			  2006-07 financial year 
			   Sector 
			   Local authority maintained  Private/voluntary  Other  Not specified  Total 
			   Number  %  Number  %  Number  %  Number  %  Number  % 
			 Outstanding 0 0 63 3 2 4 33 3 98 3 
			 Good 100 71 1,287 58 33 59 726 60 2,146 59 
			 Satisfactory 34 24 777 35 20 36 410 34 1,241 34 
			 Inadequate 6 4 107 5 1 2 48 4 162 4 
			 Total 140 100 2,234 100 56 100 1,217 100 3,647 100 
		
	
	
		
			  200 7 -0 8  financial year 
			   Sector 
			   Local authority maintained  Private/voluntary  Other  Not specified  Total 
			   Number  %  Number  %  Number  %  Number  %  Number  % 
			 Outstanding 10 5 144 5 3 4 39 4 196 4 
			 Good 132 71 2,090 66 47 68 629 61 2,898 65 
			 Satisfactory 39 21 796 25 17 25 313 30 1,165 26 
			 Inadequate 5 3 146 5 2 3 51 5 204 5 
			 Total 186 100 3,176 100 69 100 1,032 100 4,463 100 
		
	
	 Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 10 November 2008:
	PARLIAMENTARY QUESTION NUMBER 234130: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many and what proportion of (a) maintained and (b) private, voluntary and independent full day childcare settings have had to close following inadequate Ofsted inspections in each of the last five years.
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response.
	Ofsted does not possess data that allow us to identify whether inspection judgements are directly attributable to closure of childcare settings. Most of the providers that close choose to do so voluntarily and for a variety of reasons. We do not collect these reasons. I am therefore unable to provide data identifying the reasons for providers closing in each of the last five years.
	Ofsted can only cancel registration where a person ceases to be qualified for registration, We would not normally take such action as a result of inspection, unless we believed that children were suffering or likely to suffer significant harm. The usual practice following an inspection judgement of inadequate is to require the setting to take action to improve. We have a number of enforcement options open to us to bring about such improvement, such as imposing conditions of registration or issuing a compliance notice requiring a setting to take certain actions by a particular date. It is an offence not to comply with such a notice. We only move towards cancelling registration when providers cannot or will not improve, As this is often much later than an inspection, we cannot attribute cancellation directly to the inspection judgement We must always give reasons for cancellation but these relate to the requirements a provider is failing to meet rattier than the immediate inspection outcomes.
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Rt Hon Beverley Hughes MP, Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.

Ofsted: Industrial Disputes

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the effect on productivity within the Children's Directorate of Ofsted of industrial action by Unison and Public and Commercial Services Union members; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many and what type of employment tribunal claims against Ofsted have been lodged with an employment tribunal whose tribunal proceedings have not yet concluded.

Jim Knight: These are matters for Ofsted. HM chief inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to my hon. Friend and copies of her replies have been placed in the Library.
	 Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 6 November 2008:
	PARLIAMENTARY QUESTION NUMBER 232997: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of the effect on productivity within the Children's Directorate of Ofsted of industrial action by UNISON and Public and Commercial Services Union members; and if he will make a statement.
	Unison and the Public and Commercial Services Union have been jointly involved in the industrial action with Ofsted over a dispute with the current pay model, implemented on 31 March 2008. This industrial action has consisted of:
	a one day strike on Friday 16 May 2008;
	action short of a strike from Monday 19 May 2008 to Friday 30 May 2008; and
	action short of a strike from Monday 16 June to Wednesday 17 December 2008.
	The action short of a strike primarily consisted of:
	working to contractual hours
	not working overtime
	not using personal vehicles for inspections and other official visits.
	There has been very little impact on the productivity within the Children's Directorate of Ofsted. The industrial action mainly affected those inspectors of childcare and early education who were members of the above unions. 236 inspectors and managers from the Children's Directorate were recorded as striking on 16 May.
	With regard to the regulation of childcare and early education, the period of the industrial action started after the end of the prescribed inspection period, completed by 31 March 2008. The new inspection programme did not commence until 1 September 2008. Our planned programme of work for the summer included registration visits, re-inspection of inadequate provision; short inspections of those providers who had no children on roll during the prescribed period; and first inspections of those who registered with us from December 2007. We completed all our planned inspection work during this period. We also met our targets for investigating complaints and for registering new day-care providers. Although we did not meet our registration target for new childminders, our evidence suggests the main reason for this was the delays caused by some police authorities in obtaining the CRB checks. As a consequence, I wrote to a number of police authorities about this issue.
	We also undertook a four-day training of all inspectors and an assessment of their learning during June and July 2008 in preparation for the Early Years Foundation Stage. All scheduled training took place with no reported absences of inspectors due to industrial action.
	The industrial action did not have any impact on productivity relating to inspections of children's social care.
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Rt Hon Beverley Hughes MP, Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.
	 Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 4 November 2008:
	PARLIAMENTARY QUESTION NUMBER 233000: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many and what type of employment tribunal claims against Ofsted have been lodged with an employment tribunal whose tribunal proceedings have not yet concluded.
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for a response.
	At present, there are five employment claims in the tribunal, of which four are for unfair dismissal and one is for equal pay.
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Jim Knight, Minister for Schools and Learners, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.

Schools: Manpower

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many full-time equivalent  (a) teachers,  (b) teaching assistants and  (c) support staff there were in local education authority schools in (i) Yorkshire and the Humber and (ii) City of York constituency in (A) 1997 and (B) the latest period for which figures are available.

Jim Knight: The following table provides the full-time equivalent number of teachers, teaching assistants and support staff employed in local authority maintained schools in Yorkshire and the Humber Government office region, the City of York constituency and England, January 1997 and 2008,
	
		
			  Full-time equivalent teachers( 1) , teaching assistants( 2)  and support staff in local authority maintained nursery, primary, secondary, special and pupil referral units, years 1997 to 2008coverage: Yorkshire and The Humber government office region, City of York constituency and England 
			   Yorkshire and The Humber  City of York  England 
			   Teachers( 4)  Teaching assistants( 3)  Support  s taff( 3,4)  Teachers( 4)  Teaching assistants( 3)  Support  s taff( 3,4)  Teachers( 5)  Teaching assistants( 3)  Support  s taff( 3,4) 
			  January :  
			 1997 41,900 7,700 14,900 700 100 200 399,200 60,600 133,500 
			 2008 44,300 19,300 35,100 700 400 600 434,900 175,700 322,400 
			 (1) Includes qualified and unqualified teachers. (2) Teaching assistants include teaching assistants, special needs support staff and minority ethnic pupil. (3) Source: School Census (4) Includes 'teaching assistants'. (5) Source: Annual Survey of Teacher in Service and Teacher Vacancies; 618g  Notes: 1. Excludes academies and city technology colleges. 2. Figures are rounded to the nearest 100.

Schools: Standards

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department plans to spend on the National Challenge in each of the next five years; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: As set out in the National Challenge documents published on 10 June 2000, the Department for Children, Schools and Families will deploy 400 million of support to the National Challenge for the three financial years starting 1 April 2008 and ending 31 March 2011. The precise phasing between these three financial years is flexible, depending on the needs of schools.
	The National Challenge is designed to facilitate sustained improvements in schools andwith the exception of some previously committed spending on establishing structural interventionswe are not expecting to provide funding beyond 2010-11.

Special Educational Needs: Transport

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what guidance his Department provides on the procurement of home to school transport services for children with special educational needs in London.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Department does not publish guidance on the procurement of transport for special educational needs (SEN) children. It is for local authorities, including London boroughs to follow their own procedures and make appropriate arrangements.

Specialised Diplomas

Stephen Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many people have registered for 14 to 19 diplomas this year, broken down by  (a) subject and  (b) level of diploma.

Jim Knight: The latest information we have from local consortia indicates that around 12,000 young people are currently working towards a diploma qualification, based upon returns from all but one of the local authorities involved. By subject and level, this breaks down as:
	
		
			  Line  Level 1  Level 2  Level 3  Total 
			 Construction and the Built Environment 503 1,019 179 1,701 
			 Creative and Media 556 2,463 637 3,658 
			 Engineering 605 1,806 420 2,831 
			 Information Technology 360 1,286 359 2,005 
			 Society, Heath, and Development 282 1,156 393 1,831 
			 Total 2,308 7,730 1,988 12,026

Teachers: Pay

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much was spent on  (a) teacher training,  (b) teacher professional development,  (c) teacher wages and  (d) other teacher payments in each of the last 10 years.

Jim Knight: The information requested is as follows:
	 (a) The amounts spent on  (a) initial teacher training by the Training and Development Agency for Schools,  (c) teacher salaries and  (d) allowances for teachers in England in each of the last 10 years are set out in the following table.
	 (b) Information on spending on teachers' continuing professional development (CPD) is not collected centrally. Funding for CPD generally is included within schools' delegated budgets and it is for schools to determine how to spend this, based on individual needs and the school's own improvement priorities.
	
		
			  Spending on initial teacher training, teacher salaries and allowances in England in financial years 1998-99 to 2007-08 
			million 
			   Spending on initial teacher training( 1)  Estimated spending on salaries and allowances( 2, 3, 4) 
			 1998-99 162 9,935 
			 1999-00 182 10,480 
			 2000-01 259 11,295 
			 2001-02 341 12,165 
			 2002-03 378 12,775 
			 2003-04 427 13,430 
			 2004-05 468 14,060 
			 2005-06 490 14,915(5) 
			 2006-07 522 15,340 
			 2007-08 528 15,640 
			 (1) Source is the Training and Development Agency for Schools. Spending on initial teacher training includes employment-based routes funding, training bursaries, flexible postgraduate course fees, initial teacher training provider quality and funding, initial teacher training capital bids, funding for under-represented groups, new providers/start-up, primary modern foreign languages, qualified teacher status skills tests, the Secondary Shortage Subject Scheme and Access to Learning funds. Figures are rounded the nearest 1 million. (2) These figures do not include on-costs (employer pension contributions and National Insurance). In 2007-08, on-costs amounted to 22.05 per cent. of salaries. These figures are rounded to the nearest 5 million. (3) These figures include certain discontinued allowances and current allowances for special educational needs, teaching and learning responsibilities, recruitment and retention. (4) The paybill figures include the pay awards given for each year and were adjusted to reflect actual teacher numbers. (5) There is a break in the time-series in year 2005-06.  Note: 1. For modelling purposes the paybill figures employed up to 2006-07 financial year were taken from the previous year paybill estimations. 2. Due to the timescale surrounding the paybill exercises up until 2002-03, the models were developed a year prior to the financial year they referred to.

Teachers: Standards

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many teachers have  (a) applied for and  (b) gained excellent teacher status (i) since the programme started and (ii) in the academic year 2007-08.

Jim Knight: Management information from the 'Excellent Teacher Scheme' show that 73 candidates have applied for Excellent Teacher Status since the scheme started in 2006, 60 of these candidates have qualified. 20 candidates applied for Teacher Status in the academic year 2007/08 and of these 18 have since qualified.
	We are currently evaluating the scheme and expect to report the outcome in early 2009.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Departmental Pay

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what bonuses are paid to staff in his Department for working in  (a) Iraq and  (b) Afghanistan.

Douglas Alexander: The bonus scheme operated by the Department for International Development (DFID) for 2007-08 only applied to the senior civil service (SCS) and does not comprise separate bonus arrangements for SCS working in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Departmental Written Questions

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many Questions for written answer were tabled to his Department in Session  (a) 2002-03,  (b) 2003-04,  (c) 2004-05,  (d) 2005-06,  (e) 2006-07 and  (f) 2007-08 to date; and how many were (i) answered substantively and (ii) not answered on grounds of disproportionate cost.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) holds records of written questions asked of the Department since November 2004. Since this date DFID has received a total of 7,198 questions for written answer.
	We do not hold records of parliamentary questions asked before 2004 centrally. To retrieve these would incur disproportionate costs.
	We do not hold records on the number of questions not answered on grounds of disproportionate costs.

Ethiopia: Overseas Aid

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans he has to visit Ethiopia to discuss the disbursement of development aid.

Douglas Alexander: I visited Ethiopia on 16 and 17 October 2008. I have no plans to visit in the immediate future.

Occupied Territories: Overseas Aid

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what development assistance the Government have provided to the Palestinian Territories in each of the last two financial years; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: In 2006-07 the Department for International Development (DFID) provided a total of 54 million to help the Palestinian people. Of this, 15 million was bilateral aid to the Occupied Palestinian Territories, 15 million was through the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) to help Palestinian refugees in the region, and 24 million was through our core funding for other multilateral organisations that provide overseas development assistance to the Palestinians.
	In 2007-08 DFID provided 63.6 million in bilateral aid, including 15.6 million to UNRWA. Figures for our support to the Occupied Palestinian Territories through core funding for other multilateral organisations will be available in December.

Reconstruction

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much has been spent on each project funded by the Stabilisation Aid Fund in  (a) Iraq and  (b) Afghanistan in each of the last five years.

Douglas Alexander: The Stabilisation Aid Fund (SAF) began in April 2008. Expenditure figures for this first year will be available at the end of the financial year.

Reconstruction

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department spent on each individual project which it has funded in  (a) Iraq and  (b) Afghanistan in each of the last five years.

Douglas Alexander: I have placed tables in the Library detailing the Department for International Development's (DFID) bilateral projects in Afghanistan and Iraq over the last five years.

Reconstruction

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of development projects of each type undertaken in  (a) Afghanistan and ( b) Iraq have been constructed to Sphere standards in each month of the last five years.

Douglas Alexander: The complex environments present in Afghanistan and Iraq render difficult the application of Sphere standards. It is not possible to provide detailed information about the percentage of projects in Afghanistan and Iraq constructed to Sphere standards.
	However, the principles enshrined within Sphere are used as guidelines by many international agencies in Iraq and Afghanistan, including the World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

Turks and Caicos Islands: Overseas Aid

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance his Department has provided to the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands following Hurricane Ike.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) provided 200,000 in post-hurricane humanitarian relief, comprising 110,000 through the International Red Cross for the Turks and Caicos Red Cross Society to supply emergency shelter, sanitation and cooking equipment and general relief; and 90,000 to the Pan-American Health Organisation for emergency health and water systems.
	The Royal Navy vessels Iron Duke and Wave Ruler, pre-positioned in the Caribbean, also provided swift logistical and manpower support and distributed DFID relief supplies carried on board for that purpose.
	DFID also deployed two humanitarian specialists, one from London and one based in the region, to work with the Turks and Caicos authorities and the relief agencies.
	We have provided, and continue to offer, technical assistance to develop a longer-term recovery plan. The UK Government will provide financial assistance for recovery subject to discussions with the Turks and Caicos Government which are nearing conclusion.
	We are pleased to note that the Turks and Caicos obtained a $6.3 million payment from the Caribbean Catastrophic Risk Insurance Facility. DFID helped to launch this initiative in 2007.

Turks and Caicos Islands: Overseas Aid

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what methodology his Department used to determine whether to provide financial aid to the Turks and Caicos Islands following Hurricane Ike; what role other Government departments had in the decision-making process; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) has responsibility for providing humanitarian relief to the Turks and Caicos Islands as a UK overseas territory and because they needed post-hurricane humanitarian aid. We immediately deployed two humanitarian specialists, one from London and one based for that purpose in the Caribbean region, to make a first hand humanitarian assessment and to draw up a relief strategy in consultation with DFID headquarters in London and Barbados. The hurricane struck on 6 September and they deployed on 7 and 8 September. They worked with the Governor's office, the Turks and Caicos Ministry for Home Affairs, the United Nations Disaster Assessment and Co-ordination Team and the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency. We also co-ordinated closely with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Ministry of Defence and the Royal Navy. The humanitarian funding elements of our response were agreed on 10, 18 and 19 September.
	Assistance for longer-term recovery has been considered jointly with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Governor's Office and the Turks and Caicos Government. These discussions are nearing conclusion.

Turks and Caicos Islands: Overseas Aid

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what account he has taken of the independent socio-economic impact assessment prepared by the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean on the damage on the Turks and Caicos Islands by Hurricane Ike in formulating his policy on the matter.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development, jointly with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, has considered the draft assessment prepared by the Commission. We have provided our comments to the TCI Financial Secretary for inclusion in its final report.

Turks and Caicos Islands: Overseas Aid

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether reconstruction experts funded from the public purse have visited the Turks and Caicos Island since Hurricane Ike.

Michael Foster: The Department for International Development financed the visit of a technical adviser from the Cayman Islands to assist the Government of the Turks and Caicos Islands in the preliminary recovery planning.

Zimbabwe: Economic Situation

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the effect on the delivery of humanitarian aid in Zimbabwe of the decision by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe to suspend electronic banking facilities.

Douglas Alexander: Although there are few official restrictions on humanitarian access, the recent suspension by the reserve bank of electronic banking transfers, cash shortages, and a lack of clarity around the legality of operating in foreign currency has been hindering humanitarian delivery. For some NGOs, logistical constraints have meant that it has become difficult to deliver services outside urban areas.
	The UN has recently succeeded in securing commitments by the Reserve Bank to allow electronic banking access for some NGOs again, as well as arrangements whereby humanitarian NGOs can operate in foreign currency. This should remove some of the obstacles to humanitarian delivery, but we will continue to monitor the situation very closely.

Zimbabwe: Economic Situation

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what representations he has made to  (a) the Government of Zimbabwe,  (b) donor countries and  (c) the United Nations on allegations that money deposited by the Global Fund in the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has been misappropriated.

Douglas Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Preseli Pembrokeshire (Mr. Crabb) on 10 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 945-6W.

Zimbabwe: Economic Situation

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions he has had with  (a) the World Bank,  (b) the African Development Bank and (c) the IMF on the establishment of a currency board in Zimbabwe; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: Economic stabilisation, including currency reform, will be essential to recovery in Zimbabwe. If positive political change occurs and a new government embarks on a serious economic reform programme, it is expected that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will provide advice and support for stabilisation, with the backing of other financial institutions and donors. Establishing a currency board is one of the options likely to be under consideration for currency reform and halting inflation. The Department for International Development (DFID), the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and Her Majesty's Treasury (HMT) are working closely together to prepare for economic stabilisation and reform in Zimbabwe should the political situation allow and are in regular contact with (among others) the IMF, World Bank and Africa Development Bank on these matters.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Charter of Fundamental Rights (EU)

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information his Department has on the number of occasions on which a decision of the European Court of Justice has referred to provisions of the Charter of Fundamental Rights.

Caroline Flint: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does not maintain a database of all cases containing references to the Charter of Fundamental Rights. There are, however, relatively few cases in which the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has made substantive comments on the Charter of Fundamental Rights. In case C-540/03 European Parliament v Council of the EU, the ECJ reaffirmed that the Charter is a non-legally binding instrument. The ECJ has also made reference to the Charter in the following cases of note: C-402/05P and C-415/05P Kadi, C-432/05 Unibet, C-303/05 Advocaten voor de Wereld, C-438/05 Viking Line, C-341/05 Laval, C-244/06 Dynamic Medien and C-450/06 Varec. All of these judgments confirm that the charter is not a source of rights but rather reflects existing rights, freedoms and principles that are already recognised in EU law or as they result from the international obligations and constitutional traditions common to the member states. The list of cases above is not comprehensive and does not, for example, include cases where a question on the charter may have been referred by a national court on which the ECJ did not need to adjudicate.

Conflict Resolution

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what  (a) office space and  (b) civil service support will be provided to the special representative for conflict resolution mechanisms; and what expenses the representative will be able to claim.

Bill Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has asked Jack McConnell MSP to become his Special Representative for Conflict Resolution Mechanisms. Mr. McConnell will be based in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), working with the FCO, the Department for International Development (DFID) and the Ministry of Defence (MOD).
	Mr. McConnell has been allocated an office in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, which will provide a base. Staff in the FCO, MOD and DFID working on conflict issues will provide support. His travel and any other out of pocket expenses related to this role will be covered by the Departments concerned.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Peacekeeping Operations

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans there are for a Security Council resolution in response to the crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and if he will make a statement.

David Miliband: The UN Security Council has followed developments in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) closely since the upsurge in violence in October, and will continue to work with the UN Secretary General and others to reach a political solution to the region's problems. While there are no current plans for a Security Council Resolution, the Council has discussed the situation in the eastern DRC on a number of occasions, most recently on 11 November. It also issued a presidential statement on the situation in the DRC on 29 October. The UN Secretary General appointed former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo as his Special Envoy to the DRC on 3 November.

Departmental Disciplinary Proceedings

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what sanctions are available in cases of departmental staff found to have committed disciplinary offences; and how many times each has been used in each of the last three years.

Gillian Merron: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Misconduct Procedures contain the following sanctions for disciplinary offences:
	(a) a formal reprimand with a final warning
	(b) a ban on consideration for promotion or progression, including temporary promotion or progression, for up to three years
	(c) downgrading and/or a transfer to other duties
	(d) suspension without pay for a specified period
	(e) stoppage of pay increases for up to three years
	(f) ban on overseas posting, including temporary assignments unless/until the officer is no longer considered a risk
	(g) a written warning or a final written warning
	(h) dismissal
	The severity of the sanction applied depends on the type of the offence. In each of the last three years the penalties have been applied as follows:
	 2006
	At level one (less serious misconduct) there were six written warnings issued
	At level two (more serious offences or repeated misconduct) there were seven final written warnings issued
	At level three (gross misconduct) there were five dismissals and three final written warnings
	 2007
	At level one there were four written warnings issued
	At level two there were seven final written warnings issued
	At level three there were three dismissals and one formal reprimand with a final written warning
	 2008 (up to and including October)
	At level one there were four written warnings issued
	At level two there were two final written warnings issued
	At level three there was one dismissal and one final written warning

Departmental Marketing

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the cost was of  (a) internet and website design and hosting,  (b) print media design and  (c) broadcast media for each of his Department's public information campaigns since 1997.

Caroline Flint: Internet and website design and hosting, print media design and broadcast media for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) public information campaigns since 1997 have been undertaken in-house or contracted out individually by FCO posts overseas and the FCO in London. Information on the total cost incurred is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Recruitment

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many civil servants in his Department were recruited through the fast stream; and what the average salary of those officials is.

Gillian Merron: To collect the information on numbers and average salary of all Foreign and Commonwealth Office staff recruited through the fast stream would incur disproportionate cost. However, statistics on intake into the civil service fast stream as a whole are available, published annually at:
	http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/reports/faststream

Departmental Visits Abroad

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which countries  (a) he has visited in his official capacity since June 2007 and  (b) his Department's Ministers have visited in their official capacities in the same period; on what dates each such visit took place; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has visited the following countries/cities in an official capacity since his appointment in June 2007.
	
		
			  Date  Country/city 
			  2007  
			 18 July Paris and Berlin 
			 22 to 23 July Brussels 
			 24 to 27 July Afghanistan and Pakistan 
			 28 to 30 July Washington 
			 4 to 7 September Romania, Turkey, Italy and Spain 
			 7 to 8 September Portugal 
			 26 to 29 September New York, USA 
			 14 to 15 October Luxembourg 
			 18 to 19 October Lisbon, Portugal 
			 22 to 23 October New York and Washington, USA 
			 15 November Bruges 
			 17 to 20 November Israel, OPTs and Egypt 
			 21 to 23 November Uganda 
			 26 to 27 November Annapolis, USA 
			 6 to 7 December Brussels 
			 10 December Brussels 
			 13 to 14 December Brussels 
			 15 to 18 December Iraq 
			   
			  2008  
			 19 January Ljubljana 
			 22 January Berlin 
			 24 to 26 January Davos, Switzerland 
			 27 to 28 January Brussels 
			 6 to 11 February Afghanistan and Bangladesh 
			 18 February Brussels 
			 23 to 29 February China 
			 6 March Brussels 
			 10 March Brussels 
			 13 to 14 March Brussels 
			 17 to 19 March Stockholm, Helsinki and Copenhagen 
			 28 to 29 March Ljubljana 
			 31 March Paris 
			 3 to 4 April Bucharest 
			 17 April Berlin 
			 19 to 24 April Pakistan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Iraq 
			 13 to 16 May Turkey 
			 18 to 23 May New York, Washington and California 
			 28 to 30 May Stockholm and Oslo 
			 8 to 10 June Lebanon, Israel and OPTs 
			 12 June Paris 
			 16 June Luxembourg 
			 19 to 20 June Brussels 
			 25 to 28 June Japan 
			 5 to 10 July South Africa and Sudan 
			 13 to 14 July France 
			 22 July Brussels 
			 13 August Brussels 
			 19 to 20 August Brussels and Georgia 
			 27 August Ukraine 
			 1 September Brussels 
			 4 to 6 September Paris and Avignon 
			 11 September Dublin 
			 15 September Brussels 
			 24 to 26 September New York, USA 
			 8 October Brussels 
			 13 October Luxembourg 
			 15 to 16 October Brussels 
			 21 to 23 October Slovenia and Slovakia 
			 24 to 26 October China 
			 3 to 4 November Marseille, France 
			 4 to 5 November Serbia and Kosovo 
			 10 November Brussels and Bosnia and Herzegovina 
		
	
	Other FCO Ministers have visited the following countries in an official capacity since their appointments in June 2007.
	 The Minister of State for Europe
	Jim Murphy MP
	
		
			  Date  Country/city 
			  2007  
			 3 to 4 September Belgium, the Netherlands and France 
			 15 October Luxembourg 
			 5 to 6 November Slovenia 
			 14 to 15 November Germany and France 
			 29 November Spain 
			   
			  2008  
			 10 March Belgium 
			 18 to 20 March Bosnia and Herzegovina 
			 31 March to 1 April Turkey 
			 23 to 24 April Spain and Gibraltar 
			 29 April Luxembourg 
			 6 to 8 May Azerbaijan and Georgia 
			 13 to 14 May Czech Republic 
			 20 to 21 May Italy 
			 26 May Belgium 
			 16 June Luxembourg 
			 30 June to 1 July Germany 
			 4 to 11 July USA 
			 16 to 18 September Hungary, Poland and France 
		
	
	Right hon. Caroline Flint MP
	
		
			  Date  Country/city 
			  2008  
			 8 to 10 October Cyprus and Greece 
			 27 to 29 October France and Czech Republic 
			 5 to 7 November Bulgaria and Croatia 
			 10 November Belgium 
			 12 to 13 November Belgium 
		
	
	 The Minister of State for Africa, Asia and the UN
	The right hon. Lord Malloch-Brown
	
		
			  Date  Country/city 
			  2007  
			 26 to 30 August China 
			 6 to 7 September France 
			 9 to 14 September Sudan 
			 21 September to 2 October New York, USA 
			 14 to 19 October Afghanistan 
			 20 to 27 November Egypt and Uganda 
			 3 December Germany 
			   
			  2008  
			 16 to 19 January Japan 
			 27 January to 2 February Kenya and Ethiopia 
			 13 to 17 February New York, USA 
			 20 February France 
			 4 to 5 March Switzerland 
			 11 to 14 March Mongolia 
			 14 to 19 April Beijing, China and New York, USA 
			 2 May Geneva, Switzerland 
			 13 to 18 May Thailand, Singapore and Burma 
			 4 to 5 June Paris, France 
			 24 to 25 June Geneva, Switzerland and Norway 
			 29 June to 1 July Egypt 
			 13 to 19 July Maldives, Sri Lanka, Nepal 
			 1 to 4 September Zambia 
			 8 to 11 September Nigeria 
			 19 to 26 September New York, USA 
			 3 to 5 October Austria 
			 13 to 18 October Bangladesh and India 
			 6 to 7 November Kenya 
		
	
	 The Minister of State for the Middle East
	Dr. Kim Howells MP
	
		
			  Date  Country 
			  2007  
			 22 to 26 July Jordan, Libya and Egypt 
			 30 August to 7 September USA 
			 11 to 19 September Brazil, Peru and US 
			 22 to 25 October Nigeria and Ghana 
			 2 to 3 November Turkey 
			 5 to 6 November Portugal 
			 29 November to 2 December Colombia 
			 17 to 20 December Lebanon 
			  2008  
			 8 to15 January USA and Jamaica 
			 7 to 11 January Iraq 
			 31 January Canada 
			 22 to 25 February Saudi Arabia and Oman 
			 6 to 14 March Brazil and Chile 
			 28 to 31 March Bahrain and Qatar 
			 6 to 9 April South Africa 
			 21 to 23 April Morocco 
			 2 to 6 May Yemen 
			 10 to 17 May Bolivia and Peru 
			 15 to 19 June Ethiopia and Eritrea 
			 23 to 24 June Germany 
			 26 to 28 June USA 
			 3 to 9 July Canada and USA 
			 13 to 25 September USA 
		
	
	Bill Rammell MP
	
		
			  Date  Country/city 
			  2008  
			 13 to 17 October Kuwait and Iraq 
			 27 to 29 October Jordan 
			 12 to 14 November USA 
		
	
	 Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State
	Meg Munn MP
	
		
			  Date  Country/city 
			  2007  
			 8 to 17 September Mexico, Panama and Jamaica 
			 14 to 23 October New Zealand and Tonga 
			 18 to 23 November Singapore 
			 9 to15 December Dominican Republic and Cayman Islands 
			   
			  2008  
			 2 to 7 January Falkland Islands 
			 27 February to 2 March Thailand 
			 27 to 30 March Bermuda 
			 13 to 20 April Belize, Guatemala and Barbados 
			 30 April to 11 May Philippines and Australia 
			 4 to 10 June Cambodia and Malaysia 
			 29 June to 1 July Greece 
			 17 to 22 August Singapore, New Zealand and Niue 
			 17 to 20 September Spain 
			 28 September to 5 October Mexico and Costa Rica 
		
	
	Gillian Merron MP
	
		
			  Date  Country/city 
			  2008  
			 1 to 7 November Jamaica and Trinidad

EU Enlargement

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has held with his EU counterparts on the possible accession of  (a) Georgia and  (b) Ukraine to the EU.

Caroline Flint: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary maintains regular discussions with his EU counterparts on the EU's relations with Georgia and Ukraine, most recently at the General Affairs and External Relations Councils in June, September and October and at the informal Foreign Ministers' meeting in September.
	The UK continues to believe that it is important to keep the door to further enlargement open to those Eastern European countries that aspire to membership. In particular we believe that Ukraine should be able to become a member of the EU when it meets the criteria. The June Council, and the Extraordinary European Council on 1 September, asked the Commission to develop proposals for stepping up the EU's engagement with our Eastern neighbours, among them Ukraine and Georgia, including through an initiative for an Eastern Partnership. We want this to be ambitious, in support of the aspirations of each of our neighbours, and provide increased practical support for closer integration with the EU. This initiative will be one of the items on the agenda for the December European Council.

EU Institutions: Wales

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which civil servants for whom he has responsibility, other than those employed by the Welsh Assembly Government, represent the interests of Wales at the EU institutions; and what their responsibilities are.

Gillian Merron: Foreign policy, including our policy towards the EU, is a reserved matter for the UK Government. But we consult the Welsh Assembly Government closely on issues relating to its areas of responsibilities. The staff of the UK Representation to the European Union in Brussels (UKRep), as in all our diplomatic posts, advance the interests of the UK as a whole, including Wales.

EU Institutions: Wales

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what structures and protocols are in place to liaise with the Welsh Assembly Government's representatives to EU institutions.

Gillian Merron: As the information requested is lengthy, it has been placed in the Library of the House.

Forced Marriage

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what criteria he uses to evaluate projects proposed for funding by the Forced Marriage Unit.

Gillian Merron: The Forced Marriage Unit domestic programme fund strategy sets out what criteria are used to evaluate projects for funding. The strategy can be found at the following Foreign and Commonwealth Office website address:
	http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/fco-in-action/nationals/forced-marriage-unit/domestic-prog-fund

Gulf of Aden: Piracy

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the origin and base of operations of those responsible for piracy in the Gulf of Aden region; and if he will make a statement.

David Miliband: We understand from the British Officers at the Maritime Trade Office that most piracy in the Gulf of Aden originates from the Puntland region of Somalia.
	The UK Government support United Nations Security Council Resolutions (UNSCR) 1816 and 1838 calling on parties to address the growing problem of piracy off the coast of Somalia. We have been working with our EU and North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) partners to implement these resolutions.
	In September the EU set up a team to co-ordinate naval escorts protecting world food programme deliveries to Mogadishu. The EU is now planning a larger counter-piracy operation to which the UK will provide the operation commander and operation headquarters. EU partners agree that any operation must be co-ordinated with NATO and Combined Task Force 150, themselves active to deter piracy off the Horn of Africa. The UK contributes to both.
	Through the Department for International Development, the UK has allocated 25 million to support efforts to tackle the instability in Somalia which creates the conditions allowing piratical activity to flourish.

International Red Cross

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which Minister in his Department is responsible for dealing with the International Committee of the Red Cross, with particular reference to its activity in Iraq and Afghanistan.

David Miliband: My noble Friend the Minister for Africa, Asia and the UN, Lord Malloch-Brown, is the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister responsible for Afghanistan while my hon. Friend the Minister for the Middle East and Africa is the Minister responsible for Iraq. Both cover the work of the International Committee of the Red Cross in their respective portfolios.

Iraq: Asylum

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many dependants of former Iraqi employees admitted to the UK under the Locally Employed Staff Assistance Scheme have been flown to the UK under the provisions of the Scheme.

Bill Rammell: As at 14 November 2008, 98 dependants have so far been admitted to the UK under the Iraq Locally Employed Staff Assistance Scheme. We expect a further 118 dependants to be welcomed in the UK over the coming months.

Lighting: EU Law

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he expects the Government's proposals to lower the rate of VAT on energy-efficient light bulbs to receive approval at EU level.

Caroline Flint: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the then Financial Secretary to the Treasury on 7 July 2008,  Official Report, column 1266W.

Mentally Ill Staff

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what information his Department has gathered on the effect of its policies and practices on the recruitment, development and retention of employees with mental illnesses within  (a) his Department and  (b) the public sector bodies for which he has responsibility; and what use has been made of that information.

Gillian Merron: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) makes reasonable adjustments for recruitment, job selection and promotion. The FCO employs expert disability advisers who support officers with mental health illnesses. Support is provided through training, reasonable adjustments and advice both for the officer with the disability and for line managers. A review of policy and procedure for supporting disabled staff is under way and will report in December.
	The public bodies that the FCO has responsibility for follow Commissioner for Public Appointments (CPA) policy on this issue. When making appointments to bodies within the Commissioner's remit, Departments are required to follow the CPA's 'Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodies'.
	A core principle of the code is that equal opportunities should form part of the appointments process. However, the overarching principle of appointment and promotion on merit remains. The FCO is planning workshops and training for the sponsor staff of these public bodies to ensure that they follow uniform good practice in the recruitment of their employees.

Nigeria: Capital Punishment

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking in respect of the use of the death penalty in Nigeria; and what representations his Department has made to the Government of Nigeria on the number of people sentenced to death and awaiting execution in that country.

Gillian Merron: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, through its Strategic Programme Fund, supports two Nigerian civil society projects which aim to move Nigeria towards abolition of the death penalty. One project supports a civil society coalition that works to change legal, public and official perceptions of the death penalty. The other project supports a Nigerian non-governmental organisation that supports legal challenges to the constitutionality of certain applications of the death penalty.
	FCO officials have raised Nigeria's continued use of the death penalty with senior members of the Nigerian Government several times in the past year. The EU has also raised the issue with the Nigerian Government, and the FCO will continue to encourage member states to engage in this area.

Overseas Residence: Death

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what records his Department holds of the number of UK nationals under the ages of  (a) 18,  (b) 25 and  (c) 45 years who have died overseas in each of the last five years;
	(2)  what records his Department holds on the number of  (a) female and  (b) male UK nationals who have died overseas in each of the last 10 years;
	(3)  what records his Department holds on the number of UK nationals who have died abroad in suspicious circumstances in each of the last five years;
	(4)  what records his Department holds on the number of female UK nationals who have died abroad in each month of the last two years; and what official cause of death was recorded on each occasion.

Gillian Merron: This information is not held centrally, and to collate it would incur disproportionate cost.

Overseas Residence: Death

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  how many deaths of UK nationals abroad were the subject of further investigation by UK consuls in the last five years;
	(2)  what powers  (a) UK consuls and  (b) his Department have to make inquiries deaths of UK citizens overseas.

Gillian Merron: Foreign and Commonwealth Office consular staff, whether working overseas or in London, have no powers to investigate deaths overseas. Therefore, no deaths of UK nationals abroad have been the subject of further investigation by UK consuls in the last five years. However, we do make appropriate representations to the local authorities if there are concerns that their investigation is not being carried out in line with local procedures, or if there are justified complaints about discrimination against the person who has died or their family. Each case receives individual consideration.

Overseas Residence: Death

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what  (a) instruction and  (b) guidance he issues to UK consuls on procedures to follow when a UK national is murdered overseas.

Gillian Merron: The instruction and guidance given to Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) consular staff on what to do in the event of the death of a British national overseas in suspicious circumstances is aimed to ensure that they provide the standards of support set out in our publications Support for British Nationals Abroad: A Guide, which can be found at
	http://www.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/pdf/2855621/english
	and in more detail in our Guide for Bereaved Families, which can be found at
	http://www.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/pdf/2855621/bereaved-families.
	Further guidance on procedures to follow is available to all consular staff. This guidance covers:
	Reporting cases to Consular Directorate at the FCO in London, and providing regular updates.
	If a death was violent or otherwise unnatural, warning families that the coroner will probably wish to hold an inquest if the body is repatriated to England and Wales.
	The potential for involving a family liaison officer who may be deployed by the local police.
	The need to give next of kin realistic expectations of when the body will be available for burial or cremation.
	Maintaining regular contact with the local investigative authorities and keeping the family informed of developments, usually via consular directorate in London.
	In suspicious deaths, where possible arranging for some samples to be taken, by appropriate medical staff, from the body before embalming.
	Explaining to the family that we cannot investigate deaths ourselves.
	The importance of not giving speculative opinions about the cause of death.
	Providing information to next of kin on how to register the death.

Plain English

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much has been spent by his Department on Plain English Campaign training courses for its staff in each year since 2005.

Gillian Merron: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has not commissioned any training from the Plain English Campaign since 2005. The principles of Plain English are embedded in all our written communication courses.

Special Representative for Conflict Resolution Mechanisms

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Special Representative for Conflict Resolution Mechanisms receives remuneration in respect of this role.

Bill Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has asked Jack McConnell, Member of the Scottish Parliament to become his Special Representative for Conflict Resolution Mechanisms. Mr. McConnell will be based in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), working with the FCO, Department for International Development and Ministry of Defence. His travel and other out of pocket expenses will be covered by the departments concerned.

Trade Unions

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many civil servants in his Department were seconded to work for  (a) trades unions and  (b) the Trades Union Congress in each year since 2003.

Gillian Merron: None.

USA: Visits Abroad

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which Ministers have visited the United States in the last 12 months on official business.

Gillian Merron: There has been a significant amount of travel to the United States by Ministers in their official capacity over the past 12 months, and I will therefore write separately with the details.

Uzbekistan: Human Rights

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports his Department has received of the Uzbekistan Government allegedly contravening  (a) the International Labour Organisation Convention on Minimal Age of Employment and  (b) the Convention on Prohibition and Immediate Action for Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour; what steps his Department is taking in response; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: We have been concerned by reports from our non-governmental organisations and informal monitoring by the United Nations Children's Fund's (UNICEF) representative in Uzbekistan that child labour has been used during this year's cotton harvest. Our embassy in Tashkent is funding a project to establish stronger child labour monitoring systems to estimate the prevalence of child labour in remote rural cotton growing areas of Uzbekistan. The project aims to prevent and combat child labour through informal education and vocational training. Our Embassy in Tashkent will also remain in regular contact with UNICEF.
	We will continue to monitor the general human rights situation in Uzbekistan and to make known our concerns through a critical, but constructive dialogue with the Uzbek authorities. We welcome Uzbekistan's recent ratification of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention on Minimal Age of Employment and the ILO Convention on Prohibition and Immediate Action for Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour, and are ready to work with the Government of Uzbekistan in strengthening all aspects of human rights in Uzbekistan.

Zimbabwe: Politics and Government

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what response he has made to the appointment of 10 Zanu-PF provincial governors in Zimbabwe by means other than those agreed under the process sponsored by the South African Development Community.

Gillian Merron: Robert Mugabe's attempt to allocate ministerial portfolios and appoint provincial governors unilaterally runs counter to the spirit and letter of the political agreement signed with the two Movement for Democratic Change parties on 15 September. The UK with other EU member states has condemned these actions. We are supporting efforts to encourage a swift and equitable implementation of the agreement which reflects the will of the people of Zimbabwe as expressed in the 29 March election.